Hidy Ho wrote:I also read somewhere that he can only be extradited back to his home country and not to Singapore?
He can be
deported to Canada -- and probably only to Canada. He has a Canadian travel document, and thus Thailand can deport him there. Thailand would have no reason or justification to deport him to Singapore. Or to Kenya (as another random example), for that matter.
Extradition is a different process. There doesn't seem to be any international legal principle that would bind the Thai government in this situation. Thailand has an extradition treaty with Canada but not with Singapore. Nonetheless (and contrary to popular belief -- perhaps contrary to this suspect's belief), an extradition treaty is not required to extradite. Singapore has formally requested the suspect's extradition from Thailand to Singapore, and the Thai government certainly has the option to honor Singapore's request (and warrant). I expect the Thai government will, within a few days. Thailand and Singapore have good relations.
Conceivably the Canadian government could also make a play for the suspect's extradition to Canada. Press reports seem to hint that the Thai government is leaving open that possibility, as a possibility. (They've used the "e" word but without a specified destination.) I haven't found a copy of the extradition treaty between Canada and Thailand(*), but maybe it says something "interesting." It might provide a right of "first refusal" to Canada with respect to its own citizens, for example. If the suspect is also wanted in Canada to stand trial for an offense there, then his extradition to Canada is a possibility -- especially if the alleged offense in Canada is more serious. But that doesn't mean the suspect necessarily gets away from Singapore. Canada and Singapore do not have an extradition treaty, but they are "extradition partners." In this scenario he could end up in Canada first, stand trial there for something else, serve time in prison there if convicted,
then Singapore extradites him from Canada. Wouldn't that be "fun"?
Canada probably would step in and try to obtain custody of their citizen if he faces a death penalty or (in Canada's view at least) some other risk of an injustice in Singapore. That doesn't appear to be the case here, although Canada might want certain assurances (if it get can them).
These governments are all friendly with one another. They'll figure it out. "Best guess" he'll be in Singapore sometime next week, but we'll see.
(*) That might be because it was actually a treaty between the British Empire (including Canada) and Thailand since the treaty dates to 1911, and so I haven't been looking in the right places. I don't think Canada was signing its own, separate treaties until 1932 or thereabouts.
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