NEW YORK (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, Tarasov filed an appeal to the US Court of Appeals in a second attempt to reverse the conviction of Yaroshenko and free him from serving in a US prison.
"American operatives do not have a worldwide license to kidnap and torture foreign citizens wherever they may be," Tarasov said. "That resonates with what is at issue in the Yaroshenko case."
Yaroshenko was detained in Liberia in 2010 during a US sting operation conducted in West Africa. He was then transferred to the United States, where he US authorities charged and sentenced him to 20 years in prison allegedly for smuggling cocaine. Russian authorities have repeatedly expressed concern over the circumstances of Yaroshenko's arrest and the conditions of his detention.
"Throughout the five-year period of Yaroshenko’s incarceration, his kidnapping, torture and the ensuing prosecution have exerted considerable drag forces on the bilateral relationship between Russia and the United States, both in the diplomatic and the law enforcement realm," the appeal states.
Tarasov said the similarities between the cases of Yaroshenko and Toscanino set the foundation for a successful appeal."We are hopeful for a just decision," Tarasov added.
