Elfogató

Elfogató is a Hungarian term used in law and policing. It is a noun formed from the verb elfogni (to seize, capture) with the agentive suffix -ató, literally meaning “the seizer” or “the captor.” In everyday and legal language, it can refer to a person who detains or apprehends someone, such as a police officer empowered to arrest.

In common legal usage, the term often appears in compounds such as elfogató parancs, translated as “arrest warrant” or “detention order.” An elfogató parancs is issued by a court or prosecutor and authorizes authorities to locate and arrest a person and deprive them of liberty for purposes of interrogation or trial. The warrant is part of the procedural framework governing deprivation of liberty and is subject to legal safeguards, including rights of the detainee and timely judicial review.

When an elfogató parancs is executed, authorities may arrest the person named in the order and take them into custody or present them before a court. The term can also appear in media reports or official documents to denote the arresting authority or the act of detaining.

Etymology and usage notes: elfogni means to seize, and the suffix -ató forms agent nouns for actors who perform the action. The word is primarily used in legal, police, and administrative contexts in Hungary, with elfogató parancs being the standard phrase for an arrest warrant.