Former shareholder of the bankrupt banks "Snoras" and "Latvijas Krājbanka" Vladimir Antonov will be handed over to Lithuania after the completion of legal proceedings in France.
The Court of Cassation in France, which considered the extradition case on Wednesday, refused to accept Antonov's appeal against the lower court's decision to extradite him to Lithuania.
"The cassation appeal was not accepted for consideration. Thus, the decision of the Pre-Trial Chamber of the Rennes Court of Appeal from April 3 has become final," said court representative Pierre Albert-Roulhac on Wednesday.
He did not comment on the reasons for the refusal, noting that the text of the decision would be available in a few days.
Earlier, the Rennes court ruled to extradite Antonov at the request of the Lithuanian Prosecutor General, but on April 7, the businessman appealed this decision in cassation.
Antonov was arrested in western France in December last year based on a European arrest warrant.
At the end of January, a French court ordered Lithuania to clarify the conditions of his detention to ensure there was no risk of inhumane treatment, especially considering the defendant's Russian citizenship.
Vladimir Antonov and another former shareholder of "Snoras," Raimondas Baranauskas, were found guilty of committing eight intentional crimes. Antonov was identified as the organizer of the criminal scheme. The court ordered them to compensate damages amounting to €375.18 million and ruled to confiscate assets worth €105 million.
The Lithuanian Court of Appeal will begin hearing their case on June 29. The prosecution hopes that by that time, Antonov will be delivered to the country to participate personally in the hearings.
According to the investigation, Antonov and Baranauskas misappropriated assets totaling €509.18 million, causing the bank and its creditors damages of €466.67 million, and embezzled an additional €14.5 million.
The Lithuanian government nationalized "Snoras" and suspended the bank's operations in November 2011. Later, a bankruptcy case was initiated against the bank. A shortfall of 100 million lats (€140 million) was soon identified at "Latvijas Krājbanka," and in December 2011, the Riga District Court declared the bank insolvent.
