Stockholm/Agency Caucasus – Sweden refused to extradite Magomed Uspayev as a Chechen refuge to Russia, the country that killed former President Aslan Mashadov of the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria.
The Swedish government turned down a request from the chief Russian prosecutor to hand Uspayev over to Russia on grounds that Russia does not offer the guarantee of a fair hearing and the Russian administration has long been abusing the rights of Chechens.
The Chief Russian prosecutor sent a copy of its official request to Stockholm in 2006 to extradite Uspayev because Russia was accused him of kidnapping Vladimir Yatsin, a reporter of Russian ITAR-TASS, whose whereabouts is still unknown. Uspayev said back, however, that he was being pursued only because he was a relative of Mashadov. ÖZ/FT
