Alexander Vinnik Serves Prison Term in France but No Freedom in Sight – Alexander Vinnik, the alleged owner of the infamous BTC-e exchange, is once more in threat of being extradited to the US. However, the French judiciary appears inclined to send him back to Greece, where he was imprisoned, despite the efforts of the Russian’s international defense team to gain his release.
Vinnik was extradited from Greece to France, where he was found guilty of money laundering and given a five-year prison sentence in December 2020. Vinnik was detained in Thessaloniki, Greece, during the summer of 2017, after traveling there with his family.
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Taking into consideration his pre-trial detention and parole guidelines, the Russian national has completed the entirety of his French sentence. He can now legally go to Russia, where authorities have also requested his extradition in connection with unrelated allegations. He has previously stated a desire to go back to his home country.
However, France now plans to deliver him to Greece after his defense’s appeal, which was submitted by a team of legal specialists from Russia, France, and Greece, was denied last month.
The French attorney representing Vinnik, Frederic Belot, stated to the Russian business daily Kommersant:
“The Court of Cassation dismissed the appeal on Tuesday, June 28, without cause or explanation. This choice was unexpected and unanticipated.”
Since Greek authorities already authorized the American request for extradition before transferring Alexander Vinnik to France, it is now likely that he will be sent back to Greece and then to the United States. With another appeal, the attorneys were able to halt the immediate transfer, and they also requested assistance from the European Court of Human Rights.
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American law enforcement officials think Vinnik used the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange BTC-e to launder at least $4 billion. According to their allegations, some of the digital currency that moved through the crypto trading site may have been used to fund Russia’s security forces, and U.S. investigators suspect Vinnik of working with Russian intelligence.
