French Lawyer Asks Russian Patriarch to Help Save Alexander Vinnik From ‘Political Trial’ in US

A subordinate of the defence squad of the alleged BTC-e relation Alexander Vinnik has called connected the caput of the Russian Orthodox Church to intervene successful enactment of his client. The Russian nationalist whitethorn beryllium sentenced to implicit 50 years successful situation for his relation successful the infamous cryptocurrency exchange.

Prisoner Swap for Americans successful Russian Custody Is Vinnik’s Only Chance to Return Home, Lawyer Says

Frederic Belot, the French lawyer who has been representing Russian crypto entrepreneur and alleged wealth launderer Alexander Vinnik successful courts for years, has written to Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia with a petition to assistance for his client’s instrumentality to the homeland.

“The Vinnik lawsuit for the United States is not a legal, but a governmental trial,” the lawyer said successful the letter, quoted by the Russian Tass quality agency. In the U.S., helium whitethorn look imprisonment for much than 50 years, Belot warned and emphasized:

Now the lone happening that tin prevention Alexander is his exchange, among different Russians, for American citizens imprisoned successful Russia.

Belot referred to the cases of Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan. This is not the archetypal clip helium is suggesting this solution. In aboriginal September, the lawyer urged Moscow to see Vinnik successful talks implicit a imaginable captive swap with Washington, highlighting Vinnik’s mediocre wellness aft spending clip successful solitary confinement successful France and a hunger onslaught successful Greece.

In his code to Kirill, Frederic Belot pointed retired that Vinnik is simply a “deeply believing Orthodox Christian” and added that “believing that the information volition prevail successful the extremity helped him endure loneliness, separation from his family, the decease of his wife, and the monstrous injustice connected the portion of the authorities of respective countries.”

The French defence lawyer besides turned attraction to the violations of Vinnik’s rights aft his detention successful Greece and extradition to France, and past to the United States. The Russian was arrested portion connected abrogation successful Thessaloniki successful July 2017 connected a warrant issued by the U.S., wherever helium is accused of laundering betwixt $4 and $9 cardinal done the now-defunct BTC-e.

In December 2019, Greek authorities handed him implicit to France wherever a twelvemonth aboriginal helium was sentenced to 5 years successful situation for wealth laundering. In aboriginal August, aft serving his French sentence, Vinnik was returned to Greece which instantly transferred him to the U.S.

Throughout these years, Russia has besides sought his extradition connected charges of embezzlement and “fraud successful the tract of machine information” for a full of implicit $12 cardinal but Moscow’s requests were not granted. Vinnik himself, who is suspected of having collaborated with Russian intelligence, has antecedently stated his volition to look earlier a Russian court.

Do you expect Alexander Vinnik to beryllium exchanged arsenic portion of a captive swap woody betwixt Russia and the United States? Share your thoughts connected the lawsuit successful the comments conception below.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons