Spain Sees 41% Surge in Extradition Requests, Morocco Among Top Applicants

Presenting his 2021 report on Wednesday at the opening of the judicial year, the Attorney General of the State, Álvaro García Ortiz, indicated that 366 extradition cases were registered in 2021, an "significant increase of 34% compared to 2020, a year in which 272 cases had been opened against 335 in 2019". Among these 366 cases, 264 fall under the jurisdiction of the National Prosecutor’s Office of the National Court and 102 under the anti-drug prosecutor’s office, reports El Confidencial Digital.

"Extradition procedures, particularly with certain third countries, have taken longer to normalize," he explains. The main countries requesting extradition are Morocco (41), Peru (38), the United Kingdom (37), Russia (26) and the United States (25). In total, 1,165 people were arrested in Spain in 2021, including 199 Germans, 194 French, 133 Italians and 115 Romanians. Also, 1,465 letters rogatory were registered against 1,353 in 2020 and 1,439 in 2019.