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Former Kremlin aide charged in Geneva
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FORMER Kremlin aide Pavel Borodin was on Saturday formally charged with money laundering, after arriving in Geneva earlier in the day from a New York jail when he agreed not to fight his extradition.
The 54-year old, who was immediately remanded in custody at a Geneva prison upon his arrival, was charged with money laundering and belonging to a criminal organization.
Borodin, one of former Russian president Boris Yeltsin's closest confidants, had been held in a US prison since January when he was stopped on his arrival for the inauguration ceremony of US President George W Bush.
In Moscow, Russian Government officials called upon Switzerland to follow proper legal procedures in prosecuting Borodin, ITAR-TASS reported on Saturday.
A spokesman for the Russian foreign ministry, Alexander Yakovenko, said Moscow was closely following the legal proceedings.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov stated last Tuesday that judicial procedures should be followed to the letter, and that the Borodin affair should not be politicized.
Borodin has been under investigation for allegedly having taken at least US$25 million in kickbacks for awarding lucrative construction contracts, mostly related to renovation work at the Kremlin.
The scandal is linked to two Swiss construction firms that won the contracts -- Mabetex and Mercata Trading.
Borodin has denied the charges.
If found guilty, the ex-Kremlin aide faces up to five years in prison, Swiss prosecutors have said.
Borodin was imprisoned in the United States on January 17 on an international arrest warrant issued by Switzerland.
He told an extradition hearing last week through an interpreter: "I have decided to waive my rights to continue the struggle against extradition to Switzerland.
"I do not wish to remain in prison in the United States, and I agree that the case of my extradition will not be heard."
"I continue to insist that I'm innocent. I never committed any crime in Switzerland, in Russia or anywhere else," he added. "I'm absolutely sure that the Swiss court will acquit me."
Russia's top prosecutor formally closed the investigation into the Kremlin scandal last December despite the continuation of the Geneva inquiry.(SD-Agencies)
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