The Athens Court of Appeal will examine Moldova’s formal extradition request for fugitive oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc on 13 August 2025, following his arrest in Greece at the end of July.
The hearing marks a key procedural step in efforts by Moldovan authorities to bring Plahotniuc back to face multiple criminal charges, including money laundering and involvement in organised crime.
The Moldovan Prosecutor General’s Office confirmed the date in a statement issued on 7 August, noting that the extradition request was submitted to the Greek authorities on 24 July. The office also stated that it is maintaining direct and continuous communication with Greek judicial institutions to support the legal process.
Plahotniuc was detained in Athens on 22 July by Greek police acting on a Red Notice issued by Interpol in February 2025. Alongside him, former Moldovan MP and associate Constantin Țuțu was also taken into custody. This arrest follows years of attempts to locate and apprehend Plahotniuc, who fled Moldova in June 2019 amid the collapse of the ruling Democratic Party, which he led.
Plahotniuc is wanted in Moldova in connection with three separate criminal cases. He is also a key figure in the 2014 banking scandal known as the “theft of the billion”, in which approximately $1 billion disappeared from Moldovan financial institutions. The scandal contributed to a deep economic crisis and is widely viewed as a central episode in Moldova’s period of state capture.
Following his departure from Moldova in 2019, Plahotniuc resided in the United States until January 2020, when his presence was declared undesirable by U.S. authorities. His location remained unclear for some time, with unconfirmed reports placing him in Northern Cyprus. In addition to Moldovan citizenship, Plahotniuc reportedly holds Romanian, Russian, and Mexican passports, although the Mexican authorities later confirmed that the document issued in his name was falsified.
Last week, Plahotniuc issued a public statement from Greece in which he expressed his intention to return to Moldova “to prove his innocence”. In the message, he claimed to have personally requested extradition and dismissed the charges against him as fabricated and politically motivated. “The cases brought against me are propaganda by the government and a deliberate method of targeting political opponents,” he said.
Plahotniuc’s legal team has also indicated that he does not oppose extradition and wishes to return to Moldova within the next month. However, Moldovan prosecutors continue to treat the matter within the framework of a formal extradition process, governed by bilateral and international legal mechanisms.
The former Democratic Party leader’s influence in Moldova was far-reaching. At the height of his power, he held sway over the parliament, judiciary, media, and law enforcement institutions, prompting frequent references to him as the de facto ruler of the country. His political dominance collapsed in June 2019 following a short-lived constitutional crisis, during which Moldova experienced a period of dual power between a new parliamentary majority led by Maia Sandu and the outgoing government under Pavel Filip.
The resolution of that standoff, facilitated in part by pressure from the United States and European Union, led to the sudden departure of Plahotniuc and other senior figures from the country.
The current extradition proceedings represent the first substantial opportunity for Moldovan authorities to bring Plahotniuc before a court. A successful outcome would mark a significant step forward in efforts to restore judicial accountability and demonstrate progress in anti-corruption reforms.
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