In Ukraine, Suspect In Alleged Plot To Assassinate Putin To Be Extradited

Adam Osmayev shortly after his detention

A court of appeals in Ukraine's Black Sea port city of Odesa has upheld a demand by prosecutors to extradite Adam Osmayev, the main suspect in an alleged plot to assassinate Russian President Vladimir Putin, to Russia.

Osmayev, an ethnic Chechen, was detained in Odesa in February after a handmade explosive device detonated in an apartment, killing one of his associates and injuring another.

Russia's Prosecutor-General's Office has officially requested Osmayev's extradition to Russia.

Osmayev's lawyer Valeriy Kochetov said he plans to appeal the court's decision at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

Reports about the alleged plot surfaced days before Russia's March 4 presidential election, prompting skeptics to say the plot was fabricated and timed to raise Putin's popularity ratings before the vote.


Based on reporting by ITAR-TASS and Interfax