Polonsky deportation took month to prepare, was based on exhaustive evidence - source
MOSCOW. May 17 (Interfax) - The extradition of the fugitive Russian businessman, Sergei Polonsky, is the outcome of a special operation, planned jointly by the Russian and Cambodian police, a source familiar with the situation told Interfax on Sunday.
"Polonsky's detention and deportation were agreed upon by the two countries' law enforcement services a month ago. The tacit agreement on the extradition of the Russian businessman was based on the two countries' plans for Polonsky's prosecution in Russia," the source said. Cambodia "was provided with exhaustive proof of Polonsky's role in large-scale fraud," he said.
"Given that the extradition procedure at the request of the Russian Prosecutor General's Office suffered a setback and the prospect for a positive outcome was almost nil, the sides opted for a simplified extradition scheme, practiced rather frequently - deportation initiated by the police," the source said.
Russian Interior Ministry officials and representatives of the Prosecutor General's Office had earlier flown to Cambodia on several occasions to negotiate a plan for Polonsky's deportation. "The Russian side provided the required files to Cambodian colleagues, including documents obtained recently," the source said.
Taking into account the Russian businessman's personality and behavior in Cambodia, where he had been in hiding for the past few years, it was not difficult for the Cambodian police to form a Polonsky file. "The list of offences included violations of visa regulations and local laws, including a criminal case started against Polonsky after he beat up Cambodian sailors," he said.
Polonsky was deported to Russia on Sunday, according to spokesman for the Cambodian immigration administration Ouk Hei Sela.
Sela informed the press that Polonsky had flown to Moscow from Phnom Penh, accompanied by Russian officials, with a stop-over in Vietnam.
The Russian Interior Ministry launched Polonsky's deportation in order to prosecute him in Russia.
"Polonsky is being deported to Russia by representatives of the Interior Ministry to be prosecuted in accordance with Russian laws," the Russian Interior Ministry said on its website citing Interior Ministry spokeswoman Yelena Alexeyeva.
The Russian businessman had been staying in Cambodia with travel restrictions until recently in connection with a criminal investigation started against him after he beat up and illegally confined local sailors.
The Russian businessman was held at a Cambodian prison between December 2012 and April 2013. He could have been jailed for three years if the defense lawyers had not reached an amicable agreement with the sailors. Polonsky repaid the damages to the victims but the criminal case has not been closed to this day.
Russia had been seeking Polonsky's extradition since he was charged with fraud in connection with the construction of a residential area, Kutuzovskaya Milya. Polonsky also stands accused of misappropriating the funds provided by investors in the Roblyovskaya Riviera construction project.
