Vanessa Baraitser is a British judge notable for her work on cases involving French businessman Alexandre Djouhri and the Wikileaks co-founder Julian Assange. Little is known about her, except the high-profile legal cases she's, or has been, involved in.

Notable cases

Alexandre Djouhri case

Alexandre Djouhri (born 18 February 1959, Saint-Denis, France) is a French businessman who currently lives in Geneva, Switzerland. He is suspected of funneling money from former Libyan leader Muammar al-Gaddafi to finance Nicolas Sarkozy's 2007 presidential campaign, allegations he has denied. Sarkozy, who after the successful campaign served as president from 2007 to 2012, has also denied receiving any illicit campaign funding.

Djouhri was arrested at London's Heathrow Airport in January 2018 on a European arrest warrant (EAW) issued by France after arriving on a flight from Switzerland. He was later granted conditional release over health concerns.

In February 2019, Baraitser ordered his extradition over the corruption allegations, including money-laundering, active corruption of a foreign public official, and conspiracy to misappropriate public funds. In the ruling held at London’s Westminster Magistrates' Court, she wrote: "I am satisfied that there is no or insufficient evidence that the French authorities have manipulated or used procedures to oppress or unfairly prejudice Mr. Djouhri... I therefore order the extradition to France of Alexandre Djouhri."

Earlier, in 1981, Djouhri was arrested for an armed robbery of a jewelry store but was later released due to a lack of evidence.

Julian Assange case

Julian Paul Assange (born 3 July 1971, Townsville, Australia) is an Australian editor, publisher, and activist who founded WikiLeaks in 2006. He came to international attention in 2010 when WikiLeaks published a series of leaks provided by U.S. Army intelligence analyst and whistleblower Chelsea Manning. He is wanted in the U.S. on spying charges over the leaks.

In May 2019, Assange was sentenced to 50 weeks in prison in the United Kingdom after he had skipped the previous bail by seeking refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London.

In September 2019, judge Baraitser ruled for Assange to remain in prison when his jail term ends because of his "history of absconding". In the ruling, she told Assange: "You have been produced today because your sentence of imprisonment is about to come to an end. When that happens your remand status changes from a serving prisoner to a person facing extradition... Therefore I have given your lawyer an opportunity to make an application for bail on your behalf and she has declined to do so, perhaps not surprisingly in light of your history of absconding in these proceedings... In my view I have substantial ground for believing if I release you, you will abscond again."

C.J. De Mooi Case

Connagh Joseph "C. J." de Mooi (born 5 November 1969, Barnsley, South Yorkshire) is a British professional quizzer and television personality who came to spotlight in September 2016, when he was arrested in connection with claims, which he had reportedly made in his autobiography, that in 1988, he had punched a drug-addicted mugger and thrown him into a canal in Amsterdam when he confronted him with a knife.

Mooi was arrested at Heathrow's Terminal 3 on 22 September 2016 when he was returning from a three month trip from South Africa. He appeared at the Westminster Magistrates' Court and was told by district judge Baraister, "This is an accusation warrant - the allegation is of course a serious one... I do have regard for the circumstances of the case - these allegations came to light by your own admissions, by your own book and in your own words"

De Mooi was detained under a European Arrest Warrant issued in the Netherlands. Baraister released de Mooi on bail to appear at the court on November 28 for an extradition hearing. The extradition request was denied in October 2016 by Judge Khalid Quereshi on technical grounds, stating that no UK arrest warrant had been issued, and no European equivalent should have followed.

In October 2018, De Mooi declared bankruptcy following lengthy legal proceedings in connection with the arrest.

Migrant smuggling probe

In May 2016, Rekawt Kayani, 34, a British-Iraqi man accused of smuggling hundreds of migrants into the UK, was apprehended on a European arrest warrant at his home in Normanton, Derby, UK.

In September 2016, he was extradited to France after Baraister's ruling, "In light of the serious nature of the allegations, I have taken the view that extradition would not be disproportionate"