AC-2023-LON-001835 - [2025] EWHC 2770 (Admin)

Fecha: 29-Oct-2025

The Warrant

The Warrant

The Warrant is a so-called accusation warrant, seeking the Appellant’s extradition to prosecute him for three offences:

Supporting an organised crime group contrary to Article 367 of the Romanian Criminal Code (which attracts a sentence of between 3 and 10 years imprisonment upon conviction).

ii)

Trafficking in human beings contrary to Article 210 of the Criminal Code (which attracts a sentence of between 3 and 10 years imprisonment upon conviction).

iii)

Pandering contrary to Article 213 of the Criminal Code (which attracts a sentence of between 2 and 7 years imprisonment upon conviction). The offence of pandering involves “determining or facilitating the practice of prostitution or obtaining financial benefits from the practice of prostitution by one or more individuals.”

The conduct alleged to give rise to these offences is described as follows in Box E of the Warrant:

“As matters of fact, the Court held that the defendant BERARU IULIAN, between 2012 and 2022, supported the criminal group established by Balaban Dumitru, Ivan Puiu Eduard, Balaban Violeta, for the purpose of committing human trafficking offences, as well as other offences related to the protection of the activities of the organised criminal group.
In 2020, he recruited and provided accommodation for Man Adela Georgiana in his flat at 26 Redan Place, Flat J, London, for the purpose of sexually exploiting her by forcing her to engage in prostitution, and by misleading her, using manipulative techniques, he offered her the sum of GBP 300, thereby facilitating her prostitution and obtaining financial gain from her prostitution.
As matters of law, these acts meet the constituent elements of the offences of setting up an organised crime group, referred to in Article 367 paras. (1), (2) and (3) of the Criminal Code, trafficking in human beings, referred to in Article 210 para. (1) (a) of the Criminal Code, in the light of Article 182 (c) of the Criminal Code, and pandering, referred to in Article 213 para. (1) of the Criminal Code, all with the application of Article 38 para. (1) of the Criminal Code.”

The Warrant is based upon a pre-trial arrest warrant issued by the Bucharest Court, First Criminal Division dated 28 June 2022, and made final by decision of the Bucharest Court of Appeal on 7 July 2022. The Appellant was not present in Romania when this pre-trial arrest warrant was issued.

The Respondent produced Further information dated 16 September 2022 in response to questions from the CPS (“the Further Information”). This provides:

The Appellant had been officially summoned to attend court in Romania via police in London. The Appellant failed to cooperate.

ii)

The purpose of the organised criminal group (“OCG”) was mainly to derive material benefits from acting as ‘pimps’ for prostitutes in the United Kingdom. Some of the women were taken from Romania and brought to the United Kingdom. The women practising prostitution in Great Britain for the financial gain of the OCG were mainly recruited from Romania, but also in Great Britain. One woman, Man Adela Georgiana, was recruited in Great Britain by the Appellant. Certain defendants, including the Appellant, obtained material benefits through the sexual exploitation of the women.

iii)

The OCG carried out their criminal activities in both Romania and Great Britain. There were 8 members of the OCG, all of whom will be tried together.

iv)

The money derived from prostitution was transferred to the members of the OCG, credited into their Romanian and UK bank accounts. It was later laundered through the acquisition of goods, mainly in Romania.

The Appellant’s criminal activities occurred in the United Kingdom. He was in Ivan Puiu Eduard’s entourage. Mr Eduard was one of the OCG’s leaders. The Appellant operated a restaurant in London, owned by Mr Eduard. The Appellant was a trusted person of Mr Eduard and carried out criminal activities specific to ‘pimping’, consisting of recruiting young women from Romania who he then forced into practicing prostitution for his own gain, as well as the gain of Mr Eduard.

vi)

On 28 July 2021, Man Adela Georgiana filed a formal complaint against the Appellant with the police in the United Kingdom. She alleged that he had physically assaulted her and forced her to practice prostitution. Ms Georgiana alleged that she was working as an escort in London and the Appellant was a former client. He suggested she stay with his girlfriend, who was a prostitute, to share accommodation costs. Ms Georgiana accepted this offer, but once she arrived at the address she was given, the Appellant forced her into prostitution. She made an emergency call to police from a hotel in Bayswater, London, to report that she was being forced into prostitution.

vii)

In light of the indication that a brothel was being run at the Appellant’s address, police executed a search warrant at the address on 4 August 2021. Another ‘pimp’ and a prostitute, as well as the Appellant, were located at the address. Details of the evidence discovered are provided in the further information, all of which support the allegation that the Appellant was involved in organised criminality, namely controlling prostitution. The evidence gathered has been provided to the Romanian authorities.

viii)

It was intended that Ms Georgiana would provide further evidence against the Appellant, but this was not possible as she was found dead in a London hotel room on 16 August 2021, having overdosed on drugs.

ix)

The case file in Romania consists of 19 volumes and 12,000 pages.

Romania has been designated a category 1 territory for the purposes of Part 1 of the Act by the Extradition Act 2003 (Designation of Part 1 Territories) Order 2003 (SI 3333 of 2003).