Boris Mazo
Former official of the Russian Ministry of Culture Boris Mazo, accused of embezzlement and laundering of budgetary funds, was placed under arrest in Austria and is being prepared for extradition to Russia. This was stated by the Vienna Regional Court for Criminal Cases, TASS reports.
Thus, the decision to extradite the ex-official to his homeland came into force. However, Mazo's lawyers insist on his release from arrest for health reasons. The lawyers provided a medical report stating that the Russian could not be transported. The Vienna court, in turn, ordered an independent examination. According to the judge, it could take several weeks.
In the fall of 2019, the Vienna Regional Criminal Court ruled that Mazo should be extradited to the Russian authorities. At the same time, the accused was released on bail of 25 thousand euros, he was obliged to constantly be in touch and not leave the apartment in the Austrian capital. In February 2020, the Vienna Court of Appeal denied Mazo's defense a complaint against a previous extradition order to Russia.
The fact that Russia is demanding the extradition of the former official became known on November 15, 2019. Upon learning of this, the Russian asked the Austrian authorities for asylum and stated the political motivation of the case.
In September of the same year, it was reported that a number of officials of the Ministry of Culture were suspected of money laundering. One of the defendants in the case was Mazo, who held the post of director of the department of property management and investment policy. Presumably, 800 million rubles were stolen during the construction of Hermitage objects in 2015-2016.
