INTERPOL Division of the Liaison Bureau (LB) works closely with MLAU in executing all the international extraditions and mutual legal assistance requests.

Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) is the term given to the formal way in which countries request and provide assistance in obtaining evidence located in one country to assist in criminal investigations or proceedings in another country. MLA includes taking evidence from persons, search and seizure, production of documents or evidentiary items, service of process, transfer of persons to appear as witnesses, and restraint and confiscation of the proceeds of crime.

Extradition is the process by which one country surrenders an individual to another where he is wanted for prosecution or for the imposition of a sentence or to serve a sentence previously imposed.

To date, Hong Kong has signed 27 bilateral Mutual Legal Assistance Agreements and 18 bilateral Surrender of Fugitive Offender Agreements with overseas jurisdictions.

MLAU Senior Government Counsel, Ms Rebecca Drake, noted: "Mutual Assistance as a means of co-operation has advanced significantly over the last few years. Last year we had over 140 requests from overseas jurisdictions, up from around 90 in 2008, and we very much appreciate the professionalism of the Liaison Bureau in assisting us to execute these requests."

A good example of this co-operation in action was a recent Australian case involving a fugitive who attempted to murder an elderly couple in Sydney and then immediately boarded a flight for Hong Kong. The Australian police identified him while he was in the air and alerted Liaison Bureau. The MLAU quickly processed the formal request from Australia and Liaison Bureau officers were able to obtain a provisional arrest warrant and apprehend the fugitive upon his landing in Hong Kong within a few hours of the offence. He was then removed back to Australia within two months.

Apart from working with the MLAU on formal legal requests, Liaison Bureau also acts as the focal point with INTERPOL on the exchange of information and intelligence related to the pursuit of fugitives under INTERPOL Red Notice across international borders. Recently INTERPOL launched a new initiative codenamed Operation Infra-Red (International Fugitive Round up and Arrest-Red Notice). Senior Inspector (SIP) Neil Whyte, Desk Officer for MLA and extradition, recently returned from London where he attended a meeting on Operation Infra-Red. According to SIP Whyte, "this operation promotes international exchange of information on the whereabouts of fugitives who have left their national jurisdictions and are believed residing abroad. The first Infra-Red operation in 2009 proved effective in locating fugitives who had been on the run for a long time and resulted in the arrest of 45 persons around the world."

LB and DOJ officers work closely together in matters related to mutual legal assistance