LYON, France - INTERPOL has issued a worldwide international notice for the arrest of former Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori. Such 'Red Notices' are used by INTERPOL to seek the arrest and extradition of individuals wanted by police in one of the international police organization's 181 member countries.

The Fujimori Red Notice was issued on March 26, 2003, at the request of Peruvian authorities in connection with an outstanding 2001 warrant seeking Mr Fujimori's arrest on charges of murder and kidnapping.

At the request of Peru, this Red Notice, including details of the wanted person's appearance and identity, and details of the charges against him, will be placed in INTERPOL's public and police websites.

Because INTERPOL was familiar with the underlying charges brought against Mr. Fujimori, the organization was able to satisfy itself quickly that all of the relevant legal requirements for a Red Notice request had been satisfied by Peru.

On March 7, 2003, INTERPOL had agreed, at Peru's request, to formally register in its international database the details of the Fujimori case. This information, called a 'diffusion', had already been sent by Peru directly to INTERPOL's member countries in 2001 via the INTERPOL police communications network.

INTERPOL's member countries follow their national laws in deciding whether to consider a Red Notice a valid request for provisional arrest. Some countries permit the wanted person to be provisionally arrested, while others treat a Red Notice simply as information not carrying any particular legal significance.

An important consideration for member countries in deciding whether to undertake a provisional arrest in such matters is whether there exists a bilateral extradition treaty or an extradition convention with the requesting country.

There is a common misperception in the media that an INTERPOL Red Notice should be viewed, and referred to, as an international arrest warrant.

Further detailed information on the international notices system may be obtained on the INTERPOL website.

INTERPOL was set up in 1923 to facilitate cross-border criminal police cooperation. Today, it is the largest international police organization in the world.