Constitutional Court rules Torubarov’s extradition was wrong

The Constitutional Court has ruled that the former justice minister Pavel Blažek made the wrong decision when he approved the extradition of Russian entrepreneur Alexej Torubarov to his homeland last year before the authorities had settled his asylum request. Torubarov was wanted in Russia on charges for fraud and blackmail, but he claimed that he was being persecuted by the Russian intelligence service. His extradition from the Czech Republic was dramatic after the then finance minister Miroslav Kalousek intervened and made a last minute attempt to prevent his plane taking off from Prague airport. Torubarov later escaped from Russia to Hungary. The court’s ruling means that he could now return to the Czech Republic and file a new request for asylum.