With reference to the 22 Lithuanian war criminals that were referred to the Government by the Simon Wiesenthal Centre in 2002:

(1)   Can an update on the outcome of these cases be provided.

(2)   Were allegations received; if so, when.

(3)   Did the Australian Federal Police (AFP) undertake an investigation into any, or all, of the named persons; if so, what was the outcome of each investigation; if not, why not.

(4)   Were charges brought against any of the individuals; if not, was this decision made by the AFP or the Director of Public Prosecutions.

(5)   Has any foreign government formally requested the extradition of any of these persons, either on a charge relating to the information mentioned above, or for any other reason; if so, were any extradition proceedings brought against the 22 persons named and what was the outcome; if not, why not.

(1)   In response to a request from the Lithuanian government, details about 22 Lithuanians, including those who could not be located, those who were deceased and those who were identified as residing in Australia, were provided to the Lithuanian authorities. No charges were laid against those persons residing in Australia.

(2)   Allegations of war crimes against the 22 names persons were not referred to the AFP for investigation. On 30 September 2001, the Attorney-General’s Department (AGD) received a letter from the Lithuanian authorities requesting Australia’s assistance in determining whether 22 names persons ever entered Australia, if so whether they were living or deceased, and the address for those that could be located. An identical request was received via the AGD from the Simon Wiesenthal Centre in May 2002. The AFP made relevant inquiries and forwarded the results to the AGD.

(3)   The AFP conducted inquiries in relation to the status and whereabouts of the 22 persons named in the request from the Lithuanian authorities. The AFP was not requested to investigate allegations of war crimes against the 22 named persons nor were precise details of the alleged offences provided to commence an investigation.

(4)   No, a criminal investigation was not requested nor conducted. This was an AFP decision.

(5)   The Australian Government does not disclose whether it has received an extradition request. The receipt of an extradition request becomes public at the time of arrest or subsequent extradition proceedings before a magistrate.