Russian national Alexander Vinnik, whom a French court found guilty of money laundering, is to be extradited from France to Greece at the end of August. His mother, Vera Vinnik, told «RIA Novosti».
“He will be released from the French prison on 20 or 21 August 2021, in a month and a half. He was given papers about it. But he will be brought to Greece,” she said.
The basis for returning Vinnik from France to Greece was not specified. GMT Legal managing partner Andrey Tugarin told ForkLog that after the court process in France, the Russian would be returned to Greece as the country where the criminal case was brought and where the prosecution began:
“The court in France, to which he was extradited, has finished; most of the charges have been dropped. The French authorities have no reason to hold him any longer; the sentence has been imposed, five years in prison and a €100 000 fine. The Paris Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the first instance.”
According to him, the French court took into account the four years that Vinnik spent in Greece, “as he was never charged”:
“This violates the Constitution of Greece. Without charges, you can imprison someone for a maximum of 18 months; Vinnik has already served 30 months in less than ideal conditions. And now he will return to Greece because there is nowhere else to go.”
Tugarin noted that Vinnik faced charges in the United States and Russia with completely different penalties.
“And in general, the evidence of money laundering through using cryptocurrency via an exchange raises many doubts. However, the French, one way or another, confirmed the fact of money laundering,” he said.
The lawyer also emphasised that further extradition of Vinnik— to the United States or to Russia— will depend on intergovernmental agreements and the decision of Greek authorities.
“Obviously, it would be better for him to end up in the Russian Federation,” Tugarin added.
According to Vinnik’s mother, he is currently in poor condition.
“He expected to be completely acquitted. He knows that he did nothing illegal,” she added.
Earlier, the Greek court granted the extradition request for Vinnik at the request of the United States, Russia and France.
In 2020 he was brought to France, where he was sentenced to five years in prison and a €100 000 fine. The Paris Court of Appeal upheld the decision of the first instance.
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