BISHKEK -- An associate of ousted Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev's son who was arrested in Moscow last week has reportedly been released while his extradition to Kyrgyzstan is being considered, RFE/RL's Kyrgyz Service reports.
Sergei Kostyuk, the former chief of AziaUniversalBank in Kyrgyzstan who is believed to have been a close associate of fugitive Maksim Bakiev, a son of the former Kyrgyz president, was arrested in Moscow along with at least two others wanted for alleged crimes in Kyrgyzstan.
Kostyuk and Maksim Bakiev are wanted in Kyrgyzstan for financial corruption and other abuses.
Kyrgyz Deputy Interior Minister Melis Turganbaev told RFE/RL on June 17 that Kostyuk and one of his associates were released on bail from a detention center in Moscow. Turganbaev said the two suspects were found to be Russian citizens after their arrests.
Turganbaev said Kyrgyz officials would be working on Kostyuk's extradition even if they are Russian citizens.
Maksim Bakiev -- who was a powerful Kyrgyz official while his father was president -- is believed to be living in England, while his father has been living in Belarus at the invitation of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka since he left Kyrgyzstan in April 2010.
Read more in Russian here
Read more in Russian here
