MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Moscow's information request regarding the health of Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, held in a United States prison since 2011 on drug smuggling charges, continues to be ignored by the US side, Russian Foreign Ministry's Human Rights Ombudsman Konstantin Dolgov told RIA Novosti Thursday.
"We are proceeding from the fact that there has been no answer. We did not receive any official information about an answer. As soon as we receive something, we will proceed taking the answer into account."
Yaroshenko has suffered from health problems since 2014, and prison authorities have refused his access to Russian medical staff and resources.
"There are reasons to assume that Yaroshenko's health has seriously deteriorated, not least due to inhumane treatment, which he has been subjected to," Dolgov added, pointing out that the pilot has not had appropriate medical treatment.
Yaroshenko was detained in Liberia in 2010 and later transported to the United States, where he was sentenced to 20 years in jail for smuggling cocaine. Russian authorities have repeatedly expressed concern over the circumstances of Yaroshenko's arrest and the conditions of his detention.
