Firtash’s attorneys file appeal against court’s refusal to reconsider extradition case to USA

Attorneys for Ukrainian businessman Dmytro Firtash, within the allotted time, filed an appeal against the decision of the court of first instance, the Vienna Regional Court for Criminal Cases, to reject his request for a retrial of the case for his extradition to the United States.

"Surely, the appeal was filed within the time limits stipulated by Austrian law," the Group DF press service told Interfax-Ukraine on Thursday.

Earlier, the Kurier Austrian publication said, citing the court, that Firtash's attorneys were notified of the refusal of the petition on March 16, 2022 after which they had two weeks to file an appeal.

As reported, the head of the board of the Group DF group of companies, Firtash, was arrested in Austria on March 12, 2014 at the request of the U.S. authorities, issued in 2013, but then released on bail of EUR 125 million. Under the U.S. administration of Barack Obama, the Ukrainian businessman was accused of using bribes totaling $18.5 million, he wanted to obtain permits for the extraction of titanium raw materials in India for the subsequent sale of finished products in the United States to Boeing. Firtash denies all accusations and calls them politically motivated, aimed at limiting his influence on the processes in Ukraine.

In April 2015, OG denied the U.S. Justice Department's request to extradite Firtash, pointing out that it was impossible to rule out political motives for the extradition request. However, in February 2017, the Higher Regional Court of Vienna reviewed this decision following a complaint from the prosecutor's office, and in June 2019, the Austrian Supreme Court upheld the legality of the extradition.

After that, the Austrian Ministry of Justice adopted a relevant extradition order, but the process was suspended in July 2019 due to a request from the defense of the Ukrainian businessman in OG for a new consideration, taking into account additional data collected. According to Kurier, OG's decision was delayed due to a large number of submitted documents, communication problems due to coronavirus, and due to a change in judges.

Source: www.en.interfax.com.ua