Greece has halted the extradition to Moldova of businessman and former politician Vladimir Plahotniuc, who is wanted by Chisinau in connection with the “theft of the century“ - the disappearance of $1 billion from Moldova's banking system in 2014, Reuters reported, citing the Moldovan Prosecutor General's Office and a Greek judicial source, BTA reported.
Earlier, a Greek court authorized Plahotniuc's extradition to Moldova, which was expected next week, just days before the parliamentary elections on September 28.
“The extradition of Vladimir Plahotniuc to the Republic of Moldova has been halted without giving a reason“, the The Moldovan prosecutor general's office said they had been informed of the decision by Interpol. Plahotniuc, 59, denies any wrongdoing.
A Greek judicial source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said yesterday that the Greek Ministry of Justice had frozen the extradition because Plahotniuc was also being investigated by Romania for forgery and had been asked to give explanations to the court in that case.
The Moldovan oligarch was arrested on July 21 at Athens airport as he was preparing to fly to Dubai. Greek police were acting on an Interpol arrest warrant issued in February, which said Plahotniuc had 16 passports, including Romanian, Mexican and Russian.
He is the main suspect in the case of the disappearance of $1 billion from the Moldovan banking system in 2014. At the time that amount was equivalent to 12 percent of the former Soviet republic's gross domestic product (GDP). The charges include participation in a criminal organization, money laundering, bribery and fraud.
Russia is also seeking Plahotniuc's extradition on drug-related charges, Reuters reported.
Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recan wrote on Facebook that Moldovan citizens want to know that everyone is accountable before the law and that this process (Plahotniuc's case) has not been stopped. "The institutions must send him home in handcuffs," the prime minister wrote.
In a statement on social media this month, Plahotniuc described the charges against him as "slander and political hatred." Before leaving Moldova, Plahotniuc was leader of the Democratic Party from 2016 to 2019, which was part of the the ruling coalition at the time.