MOSCOW, October 28. /TASS/. Russia’s Ministry of Justice confirmed on Monday it had received the United States’ refusal to extradite Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko who is serving a 20-year prison term in the US.
Another such request can be filed after October 2021, it told TASS.
The Russian ministry issued a request for Yaroshenko’s extradition under the Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons back in April. "In reply to this request, the American side on October 7 issued a refusal to extradite this man citing the gravity of his crime and the position of law enforcers as a reason," the Justice Ministry said, adding that it had received a copy of the US side’s letter from the Foreign Ministry on October 28.
"The US Department of Justice also informed about the provisions of national laws saying that another extradition request can be lodged upon the expiry of a two-year period after the refusal to satisfy the previous such request," the ministry said.
It was the third US’ refusal to extradite Yaroshenko to Russia. The previous two extradition requests were turned down in 2014 and 2017.
Konstantin Yaroshenko was convicted in the United States in September 2011 and sentenced to 20 years in prison. The pilot was clandestinely transferred to the United States from Liberia, where he had been arrested in May 2010. Agents from the US Drug Enforcement Administration operating under cover allegedly exposed Yaroshenko’s criminal intention to transport a large batch of cocaine. He pleaded not guilty, condemning his arrest as a provocation and the whole case as an utter set-up.