Vienna court denies U.S. request for Firtash's extradition

01:44, 01.05.2015 1 min read

A Vienna regional criminal court on Thursday evening denied a request from the U.S. Department of Justice for the extradition of Ukrainian businessman Dmytro Firtash to the United States, an Interfax-Ukraine correspondent reported.

Judge Christopher Bauer said that his decision was based solely on the circumstances of the case despite the fact what political consequences it may entail.

According to him, any decision on the case could be treated as politically motivated: if either Austria had been vulnerable to U.S. pressure or ties with Russia had turned to be of more importance.

"I state clearly: political consideration wasn't the motivation behind the decision," the judge said.

At the same time the prosecutor said the decision would be appealed.

The judge announced that the decision shouldn't enter into force then and would go to a court of second instance.

However, according to the judge, Firtash is now allowed to travel outside Austria after all formalities are observed, but he must be available if a court summons him.

Until the decision doesn't become effective, Firtash's bail set at EUR 125 million remains in force, the judge added.