ATHENS, March 1. /TASS/. The custody of Russian citizen Alexander Vinnik, who has spent more than 18 months in a Greek jail without any charges filed, violates the Greek constitution and is therefore illegal, Greek lawyer Zoe Konstantopoulou told reporters on Thursday.

"Alexander Vinnik has spent more than 18 months in prison, which is in breach of the Greek constitution. It says that no one must spend more than 18 months in custody without the indictment. This deadline was violated in Vinnik’s case. His custody is illegal and anti-constitutional," she said.

According to Konstantopoulou, her client has no idea of how long he will have to stay in jail, because no one answers his requests.

The defense team also demonstrated photographs of Vinnik in a jail hospital cell, looking haggard and unwell, and a series of documents that prove that the Russian citizen is being subjected to "cynical and inhumane treatment by the Greek government and other relevant agencies."

"He announced that he would go on a hunger strike, demanding the Greek court to hear him out. Then the judge made the decision to extradite him to France and refused to listen to his testimony. Then, Alexander Vinnik requested to address the justice minister, who will have the final say on his extradition, but his request was left unanswered as well," the lawyer said.

According to her, Vinnik made numerous requests to various state agencies, which, according to the Greek constution, must be answered within 60 days. "However, no anwers were given within the reported period," Konstantopoulou said.

She said that Vinnik had spent two months in a jail hospital, and his ward is a de-facto a solitary confinement cell.

"He does not receive the required medical examination. His life and health depend on the staff, who put his life at risk," the attorney continued.

Konstantopoulou added that Vinnik’s future remains uncertain since July 2017, and this uncertainty has taken its toll on him.

"There were two rulings by the Greece’s Supreme Court about extraditing the Russian citizen to Russia, and two rulings about extraditing him to the United States and France, to which he has no relation whatsoever. Nevertheless, Alexander is being kept in jail in agonizing suspense. This is torture, and this kind of treatment is inadmissible for any human being," she said.

 

Physical exhaustion

Speaking about her client’s health, Zoe Konstantopoulou said that after more than 90 days of hunger strike, Vinnik has lost about 30% of his weight and now weights 57 kilograms.

"This is an extremely serious health condition that entails hematology-related complications," she said. "But the worst thing is that the Greek prison authorities have twice informed Vinnik that his life is at risk. The latest official notification came from police officers of the Attica security service."

She described the Greek authorities treatment of Vinnik as "criminal," because they keep him in custody despite the fact that his health and even life are in danger.

"All preconditions have been fulfilled for extraditing Vinnik to his home country - he is a citizen of Russia, and he gave his consent to being extradited to Russia. A first instance court in Thessaloniki ruled on his extradition, which was confirmed by two rulings of the Supreme Court," she said.

 

Vinnik’s case

Russian national Alexander Vinnik was detained in Greece on July 25, 2017, at the US’ request, where he is accused of laundering $4-9 bln through the now non-existent BTC-e cryptocurrency trading platform. Russia has sought the individual’s extradition, while France sent a similar request in June.

He has been in a Greek prison since then. Greece's Supreme Court ruled in 2017 to extradite Vinnik to the United States but later on revised its decision and first ruled to extradite him to Russia at the request of the Russian prosecutor’s office and then to France on a European arrest warrant issued by Paris.

Since November 26, 2018, Vinnik has been on a hunger strike protesting against "judicial outrage," calling himself a political prisoner and demanding that the Greek authorities give him a possibility to get back to his homeland.

His defense lawyers have demanded Vinnik’s release, as the 18 months during which under the Greek constitution he could be held in custody without charges brought against him, expired on January 26, 2019.