NABU detective Oleksandr Abakumov said that law enforcement officers sent the documents necessary for the extradition of Timur Mindich from Israel to the Prosecutor General's Office two weeks ago. However, according to him, Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko has not yet approved them. At the same time, the businessman's lawyer Andriy Kostenok questioned the veracity of the information voiced by the bureau employee.
Oleksandr Abakumov spoke about sending documents to the Prosecutor General's Office regarding the extradition of Timur Mindich, whom the investigation considers the leader of the large-scale embezzlement scheme in the energy sector in the “Midas” case, in an interview with the YouTube channel “There is a Question”.
“Two weeks ago, we sent all the extradition materials to the Attorney General's Office. And, as far as I know, they are still signed by the Attorney General. I received this update literally an hour ago from the detectives who are working on this case. The timeline – there are a number of procedures there. Israel is a very complicated country for extradition. They need to be given the materials of virtually the entire criminal case. We have translated a large amount of evidence into their language to confirm that our suspicion is well-founded,” he said.
According to the detective, the head of the Prosecutor General's Office, Ruslan Kravchenko, should sign this petition as soon as possible. At the same time, he added that the department may be conducting its own procedures to examine the validity.
Abakumov also noted that the speed of consideration usually depends on the volume of materials and the “availability” of the Prosecutor General.
“I can't say right now whether two weeks is justified or not. I hope that the Prosecutor General will sign it in the near future, and we will enter into communication directly with the Israeli side,” the law enforcement officer added.
Commenting on the information provided by Abakumov to the Public about the preparation of documents for the extradition of Timur Mindich, his lawyer Andriy Kostenok stated:
“Ask those who spread it. There is a pre-trial investigation body. If someone spread (information – ed.), then first of all ask whether they really spread reliable information,” said the businessman's defense attorney.
The Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAP) refused to comment on the information regarding Mindich's extradition. Suspilne also contacted the Prosecutor General's Office, but had not received a response at the time of publication.
Later, the UCP informed us that they had sent a request to the Israeli Ministry of Justice for the extradition to Ukraine of Timur Mindich, as well as Oleksandr Zukerman.
Earlier, in an interview with the Public, NABU Director Semen Kryvonos said that Ukraine is preparing documents for the extradition procedure of the main suspects in the “Midas” case – businessman Timur Mindich and his business partner Oleksandr Zukerman, who are in Israel. However, it is difficult to say whether they will be transferred to Ukraine.