United States v. Abdalla
United States v. Abdalla
Opinion of the Court
Defendants Baktash Akasha Abdalla and Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla (collectively the "Akasha Brothers") move to compel the Government to produce documents related to their "extradition and/or expulsion from Kenya." (See"Motion," Dkt. No. 65.) The Akasha Brothers argue that the requested documents are material to their defense that they were forcibly kidnapped by agents of the United States government and that the Court therefore lacks jurisdiction over their prosecution. (See"Def. Mem. of Law," Dkt. No. 66.) Because the Akasha Brothers fail to show that the documents they seek from the Government could be material to any non-frivolous defense to their prosecution, the Motion is DENIED.
I. BACKGROUND
The Akasha Brothers, along with Gulam Hussein, Vijaygiri Anandgiri Goswami, and Muhammad Asif Hafeez (collectively, and together with the Akasha Brothers, "Defendants"), *789are charged with orchestrating an international narcotics conspiracy based in Kenya, with a distribution network that included the United States. (See"Superseding Indictment," Dkt. No. 55.
The Akasha Brothers are citizens of Kenya and were arrested by Kenyan authorities in October 2014. (See Def. Mem. of Law at 5-6; Dkt. No. 66, Ex. B at 1-2.) After their arrest, the Kenyan government initiated extradition proceedings against the Akasha Brothers in the Chief Magistrate's Court at Mombasa ("Kenyan Magistrate Court") to determine whether the Akasha Brothers could be extradited to the United States to face prosecution in the instant case, as requested by the United States government. (See Dkt. No. 66, Ex. B at 5-6 and Ex. C.) The Kenyan government also requested that the Akasha Brothers be detained pending the resolution of the extradition proceedings. (See id., Ex. B at 41-43.)
In November 2014, the Kenyan Magistrate Court ordered that the Akasha Brothers could not be removed from Kenya without a prior order by a Kenyan court "to ensure that the rule of law prevails in this case." (Id., Ex. B at 35.) In December 2014, the Kenyan Magistrate Court ordered that the Akasha Brothers be released from detention once they satisfied various "strict bond terms that will ensure [their] attendance in court." (Id. at 50.)
On January 30, 2017, and again on January 31, 2017, the High Court of Kenya at Mombasa issued orders stating that the Akasha Brothers were in the custody of the "Inspector General of Police" and the "Director of Criminal Investigation" (collectively, "Kenyan Law Enforcement Agents"). (See Id., Exs. E and F.) The High Court of Kenya ordered the Kenyan Law Enforcement Agents to produce the Akasha Brothers "together with the original of any warrant or order for detention." (Id. ) The High Court of Kenya further ordered that the Kenyan Law Enforcement Agents were "hereby restrained and prohibited from removing the applicants out of the jurisdiction of this court." (Id. ) However, on January 31, 2017-the same day the High Court of Kenya issued the latter of the orders described above-the Akasha Brothers were in the custody of the United States government and were produced for their initial appearances in this Court. (See Dkt. Nos. 17 and 22.)
The Akasha Brothers assert that the confusion about their whereabouts is explained by the fact that the United States government "forcibly kidnap[ped]" them from Kenya and brought them to the Southern District of New York in January 2017. (Def. Mem. Of Law at 1-2.) To support this version of events, Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla submitted a sworn affidavit attesting that on or about January 28, 2017, he was sitting in his vehicle in Mombasa, Kenya when several armed individuals who "identified themselves as police" forced him into the backseat of his car, bound his hands, confiscated his two cellular telephones, and eventually transferred him to a second car and covered his head. (See"Affidavit," Dkt. No. 70, Ex. C.) Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla attests that he was then transferred to a "small, dark, very hot windowless room," where he was kept without food or water for approximately two days. (See id. ¶¶ 11, 14-15.) Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla attests that during those two days, men repeatedly interrogated him about the whereabouts of his brother, Baktash Akasha Abdalla, and when he denied any such knowledge, they beat him with *790their hands and sticks, kicked him, and poured water on him. (See id. ¶ 12.) After approximately two days, Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla was transferred to the custody of agents of the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, who brought him to the Southern District of New York by airplane. (Id. ¶¶ 15-16.)
The Akasha Brothers move to compel the Government to produce any documents related to their extradition or expulsion from Kenya pursuant to Rule 16 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure ("Rule 16"). (See Motion.) The Akasha Brothers argue that the requested documents will be material to a subsequent motion they intend to file to dismiss the Superseding Indictment. (See Def. Mem. of Law at 1-2.) The Superseding Indictment must ultimately be dismissed, the Akasha Brothers argue, because the Court lacks jurisdiction over their prosecution as a result of the Government's conduct in bringing them from Kenya to the United States. Specifically, the Akasha Brothers argue that the Court lacks jurisdiction because: (1) the Government's actions in removing them from Kenya while extradition proceedings were pending violated the United States' extradition treaty with Kenya (the "Extradition Treaty," Dkt. No. 66, Ex. A), and (2) the Government's conduct in kidnapping the Akasha Brothers was so shocking and outrageous that it divested the Court of jurisdiction over the prosecution that flowed from that conduct. (See Def. Mem. of Law at 10-23.)
In opposition, the Government argues that the Motion should be denied because: (1) the Akasha Brothers lack standing to challenge the actions of the Kenyan government in delivering them to the United States government; (2) the Akasha Brothers' allegations of abuse at the hands of Kenyan police officers do not rise to the level of outrageous misconduct by agents of the United States government necessary to set forth a constitutional challenge to the Court's jurisdiction; and (3) even if the Akasha Brothers had alleged significant abuse by agents of the United States government, case law does not support the contention that such abuse would divest the Court of jurisdiction. (See"Government Brief" at 13-16, Dkt. No. 68.)
In reply, the Akasha Brothers argue that the requested documents are material to their defense because the requested documents may "shed light on the United States government's involvement in the kidnapping" and because the documents will demonstrate whether or not the Akasha Brothers were removed from Kenya pursuant to an expulsion or extradition order and consequently whether their removal was in compliance with the Extradition Treaty. ("Def. Reply Brief" at 3, Dkt. No. 69.)
II. DISCUSSION
A. Rule 16
In relevant part, Rule 16 provides that the Government "must permit the defendant to inspect and to copy ... documents, if the item is within the government's possession, custody, or control and ... the item is material to preparing the defense." Fed. R. Crim. P. 16(a)(1)(E)(i). In order to compel the Government to produce certain evidence, a "defendant must make a prima facie showing of materiality, and must offer more than the conclusory allegation that the requested evidence is material." United States v. Urena,
"The 'materiality standard of Rule 16 normally is not a heavy burden.' " Urena,
B. The Ker-Frisbie Doctrine
As a general principle, "the power of a court to try a person for crime is not impaired by the fact that he had been brought within the court's jurisdiction by reason of a 'forcible abduction.' " Frisbie v. Collins,
However, courts have recognized some limited exceptions to the Ker- Frisbie doctrine, "guided by the underlying principle that the government should be denied the right to exploit its own illegal conduct, and when an accused is kidnapped and forcibly brought within the jurisdiction, the court's acquisition of power over his person represents the fruits of the government's exploitation of its own misconduct." United States v. Toscanino,
With respect to the first exception, only a violation of an explicit provision of an extradition treaty may divest a court of jurisdiction. See United States v. Alvarez-Machain,
In order to invoke the second exception to the Ker- Frisbie doctrine, a defendant will generally need to demonstrate *792a "complex of shocking governmental conduct sufficient to convert an abduction which is simply illegal into one which sinks to a violation of due process." Lujan,
Thus, in determining whether the Government conduct in bringing a defendant within a court's jurisdiction was so shocking as to violate due process, the chief inquiry is whether the facts of the case "fall[ ] on the Lujan side of the balance ... [or] on the Toscanino side." United States v. Reed,
C. Application
The Akasha Brothers move to compel the Government to "produce the extradition and/or expulsion documents in this matter," arguing that such documents will support a subsequent motion to dismiss the Superseding Indictment on the grounds that their transfer from Kenya to the Southern District of New York violated the Extradition Treaty and their due *793process rights. (Def. Mem. of Law at 1-2.) However, even if proven true, the Akasha Brothers' allegations do not satisfy either exception to the Ker- Frisbie doctrine, and so the requested documents cannot be material to any non-frivolous defense to prosecution.
With respect to the first exception to the Ker- Frisbie doctrine, the Akasha Brothers lack standing to challenge their prosecution on the basis of any alleged violation of the Extradition Treaty; there is no indication that the government of Kenya has raised any objection to the prosecution of the Akasha Brothers in this Court, and the Extradition Treaty does not explicitly create privately enforceable rights. (See Extradition Treaty); Barinas,
Additionally, even if the Akasha Brothers did have standing to challenge a violation of the Extradition Treaty, the Akasha Brothers fail to allege any such violation. The Akasha Brothers' allegations that they were removed from Kenya before they were formally extradited do not run afoul of any provisions of the Treaty, which sets forth rules for extradition, but does not state that extradition is the sole mechanism by which a Kenyan national may be transferred to the United States for criminal prosecution. See Alvarez-Machain,
The Akasha Brothers argue that their transfer from the custody of Kenyan police officers to United States agents ran afoul of direct orders from the High Court of Kenya prohibiting the Kenyan Law Enforcement Agents from removing the Akasha Brothers from the jurisdiction of the Kenyan courts. However, "United States courts do not review challenges to foreign authorities' compliance with their own domestic law in granting a removal request by this country." United States v. Hertular,
*794Because the Akasha Brothers lack standing to raise a violation of the Extradition Treaty, and because any such challenge would lack merit if they did have standing to raise it, the Akasha Brothers have not put forth a prima facie case that any documents they demand from the Government could support a non-frivolous defense based on the first exception to the Ker- Frisbie doctrine.
With respect to the second exception to the Ker- Frisbie doctrine, the Akasha Brothers argue that because their transfer to the United States was precipitated by Kenyan police officers' kidnapping of Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla, followed by a two-day violent interrogation, the Court lacks jurisdiction over the prosecution that flows from that violent conduct. However, these allegations, if true, charge only Kenyan officials with violent conduct against Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla. The Akasha Brothers do not claim that they suffered any violence, custodial interrogation, or torture at the hands of United States officials. Additionally, there is no reason to believe that the documents the Akasha Brothers seek to compel-"extradition and/or expulsion documents" (Motion at 2)-could plausibly demonstrate that agents of the United States government directed Kenyan officials to engage in any of the alleged violent conduct. See United States v. Scully,
The Akasha Brothers thus fail to show that if the Motion were granted they would be able to produce "some credible proof that the actions against [them] were taken by or at the direction of United States officials." Reed,
The Akasha Brothers fail to make a prima facie showing that the documents they seek from the Government would be material to any non-frivolous defense to their prosecution. See Urena,
III. ORDER
For the reasons stated above, it is hereby
ORDERED that the motion (Dkt. No. 65) of defendants Baktash Akasha Abdalla and Ibrahim Akasha Abdalla to compel the Government to produce documents related to their extradition and/or expulsion from Kenya under Rule 16 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure is DENIED.
SO ORDERED.
The operative charging document, referred to here as the "Superseding Indictment," is actually the ninth superseding indictment brought in this case. (See Dkt. No. 55.)
The Government appears to question whether Toscanino remains in effect in light of subsequent Supreme Court decisions, and decisions in this District, that have continued to apply the Ker-Frisbie doctrine in the years since the Court of Appeals issued the Toscanino decision. (See Government Brief at 8-13.) To be sure, some recent decisions in this District have interpreted Toscanino to be essentially limited to its particular facts. See, e.g., United States v. al Liby,
To be sure, if the Extradition Treaty had been violated as a result of a violation of the domestic laws of Kenya, then the alleged violations of Kenya's domestic laws could be pertinent to this Court's jurisdiction. But, as discussed above, the Extradition Treaty does not apply where, as here, the transfer of the defendants did not occur through extradition. (See Extradition Treaty at Article 8 (providing that "[t]he extradition" must conform to the laws of the territory from which a defendant is to be extradited but making no mention of other methods of removing a defendant from the territory).)
Reference
- Full Case Name
- United States v. Baktash Akasha ABDALLA
- Cited By
- 2 cases
- Status
- Published