Maxim Bakiyev, Kyrgyz ex-leader’s son, wanted by US
Maxim Bakiyev, the son of pictured former Kyrgyzstan President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, was arrested in the UK on October 12, 2012. The US wants to extradite him on fraud charges.
The United States has asked Britain to extradite Maxim Bakiyev, the son of Kyrgyzstan's former president Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
The son of the former leader was arrested on Friday in London, at the request of Kyrgyzstan and the US, said Reuters. British police said he was detained by extradition officers by request of US authorities who would like the question him on his alleged involvement in fraud.
"The United States has requested the extradition of Mr. Bakiyev from the United Kingdom to face trial in US federal court on serious charges of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and obstruction of justice," said a statement from the US embassy in the Kyrgyz capital, according to Reuters.
The Metropolitan Police said the charges against the younger Bakiyev included "two counts of conspiracy to defraud and conspiracy to pervert the course of justice in the USA between April 2010 and April 2012," according to the BBC.
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The former president, Kurmanbek, was ousted in 2010 in violent street protests, said Agence France Presse. Under his father's tenure, Maxim served as a top official with a penchant for luxury that earned him the nickname "the Prince." He headed the Central Agency for Development and also handled fuel supply contracts for the Manas US airbase, said AFP.
The British embassy in Kyrgyzstan released a statement saying, "We are conscious that… the leadership and people of Kyrgyzstan are keen to ensure that those accused of past abuses of power are brought before the courts to answer allegations against them."
The younger Bakiyev arrived in the UK in 2010, after his father was deposed, and reports suggest he was arrested on arrival, but allowed to stay in the UK as his request for political asylum was considered, according to the BBC.
The senior Bakiyev was given political asylum in Belarus.
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