Russian businessman Artem Uss managed
to abscond from house arrest in Italy and escape back to Moscow
by exploiting an international network of contacts including a
Serbian criminal gang, according to a report by the Wall Street
Journal published on Wednesday citing sources familiar with the
dossier.
Uss, the 40-year-old son of a Siberian governor and oil magnate
close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, broke his ankle tag
and fled back to the Russian capital at the end of March after
learning of the approval of his extradition to the US where he
is wanted for arms smuggling.
Initially it was alleged he was helped to escape by Russian
security operatives.
However, a source in Italy told the WSJ the Italian authorities
believe this is not the case since the risk of surveillance
would have been too high.
"We would have known," said the source.
Uss changed cars at least once and crossed several borders on
his way to Serbia, from where he is believed to have flown to
Moscow.
The Kremlin-linked businessman had been arrested in Italy at the
request of the United States on October 17, 2022, and
transferred to prison before a three-judge panel of the Milan
court approved his request to be moved to house arrest.
The US embassy in Rome asked the Italian authorities to
reconsider because of the risk of escape, but the justice
ministry replied that the jurisdiction rested with the courts.
On March 22, the day after a Milan court approved Uss's
extradition request to the United States, he disappeared.
The affair has caused friction between the ministry and the
judiciary and prompted Premier Giorgia Meloni to say the
government would clear up "anomalies".
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