Moscow officially rejects London's request for Lugovoi extradition

[Eugene]

Source: Interfax

Jul 5 2007 12:59PM

Moscow officially rejects London's request for Lugovoi extradition

MOSCOW. July 5 (Interfax) - Moscow has forwarded an
official document to London notifying it that Andrei
Lugovoi, whom British authorities have charged with the
poisoning of former Russian Federal Security Service
(FSB) officer Alexander Litvinenko, will not be extradited
to the United Kingdom, a Moscow-based source told
Interfax.

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office, which has sent
an official reply to the UK to its extradition request for
Lugovoi, motivated the decision by the fact that the
Russian constitution bans the extradition of Russian
citizens to foreign states, the source said.

"The constitution bans turning Russian citizens over to
foreign states," he said.

Interfax could not immediately obtain official comments
on the issue from the Prosecutor General's Office.

Link: http://www.interfax.ru/e/B/politics/28.html?id_issue=11784068