Ministry of Justice confirms the detention of a Russian citizen
The Finnish Ministry of Justice confirms that Russian citizen Maxim Senakh was detained in Finland on 8 August. This took place at the request of the United States Department of Justice on the grounds of the Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and Finland. Mr Senakh is being charged with several cases of computer fraud and misdemeanour in the State of Minnesota. Mr Senakh is suspected of having derived considerable benefit from his criminal actions. A United States court of law has ordered Mr Senakh to be imprisoned.
According to the Treaty between Finland and the United States and the legislation on extradition, a person suspected of an extraditable offence may be detained to ensure the extradition even if no request concerning his/her extradition has not yet been presented.
The United States authorities must submit an official request for extradition to the Finnish Ministry of Justice within 45 days from the detention. If such a request is not submitted, Mr Senakh will be released.
After the receipt of the request, the procedure in Finland is such that the National Bureau of Investigation conducts an extradition investigation, followed by the Ministry of Justice requesting the opinion on the request for extradition from the Supreme Court. If the Supreme Court considers that the legal grounds for extradition do not exist, the ministry must reject the request. If this is not the case, the Ministry of Justice examines whether it will grant the extradition.
Inquiries: Juhani Korhonen, Legal Adviser, tel. +358 2951 50208 (e-mail: [email protected]), Hannu Taimisto, Legal Adviser, tel. +358 2951 50430 (e-mail: [email protected])