The judicial and diplomatic procedures concerning the extradition request of Igor Grechushkin, the Russian-Cypriot shipowner of the Rhosus, were the subject of a meeting Thursday morning between Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar and the Bulgarian ambassador to Beirut, Iassen Tomov.
Welcoming the exemplary cooperation and coordination of the Bulgarian authorities, Nassar agreed with the ambassador to maintain close contact in order to speed up the procedure, especially since the extradition treaty between Lebanon and Bulgaria should facilitate the transfer of the arrested individual to Beirut as soon as possible.
Lebanon now has 40 days to prepare the case file justifying such a request.
Grechushkin was arrested on September 5 at Sofia Airport in Bulgaria, after being detained upon arrival from Paphos (Cyprus), on the basis of an Interpol red notice issued following a conviction in absentia by the Lebanese judiciary in connection with the investigation into the Beirut port explosion.
Grechushkin had chartered the Rhosus, the vessel that transported the ammonium nitrate responsible for the Beirut port explosion on August 4, 2020, which killed more than 200 people, injured thousands, and caused massive destruction.
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