- 79 1. The prison sentence to be imposed on him will be less than four years, or when the accused has
been detained for more than two-thirds of the prison term requested by the prosecutor in the
written indictment.
2. The probability that the accused will evade prosecution or disrupt the probative activity has
ceased.
3. The accused provides the surety that has been established or, if applicable, the person who is
insolvent offers a personal guarantee.328
243. Based on the foregoing, the Court will analyze the alleged violations as regards: (A) the
arbitrary nature of the provisional arrest; (B) the alleged unlawful and arbitrary nature of the
detention following the decision of the Constitutional Court; (C) the duration of the provisional
arrest, and (D) the right to appeal before a competent judge or court. Lastly, it will refer to (E) the
alleged violation of the right to personal integrity.
A. Arbitrary nature of the provisional arrest
A.1) Arguments of the parties and of the Commission
244. The Commission argued that, when determining the need for provisional arrest with a view to
extradition, the concept of “procedural risk” should also be taken into consideration. Thus, it
concluded that “the decision in the appeal of December 11, 2008, was arbitrary” since it indicated
that “the concept of ‘procedural risk’ did not have to be examined, because this was not a criminal
case instituted in Peru, but a ‘provisional arrest made with a view to extradition.’” The Commission
also argued that “the absence of a time limit expressly established for a provisional arrest with a
view to extradition […] is incompatible with the principle of predictability.”
245. The representative argued that the decision in the appeal concerning the detention of Wong
Ho Wing did not take into account “whether […] he would evade prosecution and interfere with the
extradition process.” He also underlined that the Chamber had not “verified the existence of other
less onerous measures.” Therefore, he argued that since the provisional arrest was “unreasonable,
disproportionate and lacking appropriate grounds […] Peru had violated the rights to personal
liberty (Article 7(3)) and judicial guarantees (Article 8(1)) recognized in the Convention.” He added
that “the procedural laws with regard to extradition do not establish a time limit for deprivation of
liberty during the extradition process or when they should conclude, [which] adds a degree of
arbitrariness to the situation of Wong Ho Wing.” Accordingly, he alleged the violation of Article 7(5)
in relation to Articles 1(1) and 2 of the Convention.
246. The State indicated that “[t]he deprivation of liberty [of Wong Ho Wing] was the result of a
duly founded provisional arrest warrant issued by the competent jurisdictional organ,” so that it
was in keeping with the laws of Peru. It also indicated that “the procedural risk was evaluated and
his specific situation analyzed, and it was considered that his personal liberty should be limited to
ensure that he could not interfere with the ongoing investigations or avoid prosecution.” It
emphasized that, during the appeal proceedings, “the presumed victim’s defense counsel did not
provide evidence in relation to the procedural risk.” The State added that the representative had
not filed any remedy against the second instance decision confirming the provisional arrest that
could have been “contested by an application for habeas corpus.” Regarding the failure to regulate
the time limit for detention, it argued that “the inter-American system does not have a standard or
guidelines in its case law related to the ‘principle of predictability’ that can be used as a reference
to determine international responsibility for violation of Article 7(5).” On this point, it affirmed that
328
Procedural Code promulgated by Legislative Decree No. 638 of April 27, 1991 (evidence file, folio 8623).