Interpol notices valuable tools in helping police track down fugitives

Interpol red notices have been issued against a couple who went missing while being investigated for allegedly failing to deliver luxury goods worth at least $32 million to their customers.

The police, announcing on Tuesday that the notices as well as warrants of arrests have been issued, said they are working with their foreign counterparts to trace the 26-year-old man and his wife, 27.

Prior to their disappearance, the man was arrested on June 27, and his passport was impounded by the police, while his wife, understood to be a Thai national, surrendered her passport to the authorities on June 30.

A 40-year-old Malaysian man was arrested and charged on Wednesday last week over allegedly helping the couple leave Singapore by hiding in the container compartment of a lorry on July 4.

So what is an Interpol red notice? The Straits Times answers some of your questions about Interpol and how a red notice works.

A: The International Criminal Police Organisation, commonly referred to as Interpol, is an inter-governmental agency that helps facilitate cooperation among the law enforcement forces of its 195 member states.

Other than helping countries work together to fight transnational crimes such as terrorism and cybercrimes, it also manages databases of information on crimes and criminals that member states can access.

While its headquarters is in Lyon, France, the Interpol Global Complex for Innovation was opened in Singapore in 2015. The complex, located in Napier Road, has a research and development facility and a digital forensics laboratory, among other things.

A: Interpol notices allow the police to alert their counterparts in other countries of potential threats, as well as request information and ask for assistance in solving crimes.

There are eight types of notices, each with a colour code.

A black notice, for instance, is a request to seek information on unidentified bodies, while a green notice is a warning about the criminal activities of an individual considered a possible threat to public safety.

The notices are only for the police and generally not made public, unless there is a need to alert or seek help from members of the public, in which case an extract of the notice is published on the Interpol website.

A: This is an international wanted person notice that alerts police worldwide about fugitives.

The notice requests law enforcement units worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or other legal action.

Once a red notice is issued, police in other countries can be on the lookout for the fugitives and use the red notice to support extradition proceedings after an arrest is made.

But an Interpol red notice is not an arrest warrant and, therefore, Interpol cannot compel the law enforcement unit in any country to arrest someone. Each country decides what value it gives to a red notice.

There are currently about 69,000 red notices, of which slightly more than 7,000 are public. Last year, 10,776 red notices were issued.

A: There are currently five Singaporeans who have public red notices issued against them.

Siak Lai Chun, 60, has been on the list for more than two decades. The former OUB assistant manager fled Singapore in December 1997 after allegedly stealing $18.7 million from the bank using fake cashier's orders.

Muhammad Ridzuan Johan, 40, and Muhammad Faidhil Mawi, 37, are wanted in separate cases over two murders that took place in 2007 and 2006.

The other two are Neo Soon Joo, 51, a former cabby and alleged mastermind behind a 2008 armed robbery and kidnapping, and Koh Kian Tiong, 49, who is alleged to have obtained and accepted gratifications. The time of the offence is not publicly available.