Brazil rejects U.S. request to extradite suspected Russian spy

The Brazilian government has declined a request from the United States to extradite a Russian national, Sergey Vladimirovich Cherkasov, who has been under arrest in Brazil since 2022.

Cherkasov, allegedly a spy posing as a Brazilian, was detained after attempting to enter the Netherlands using a fake Brazilian passport.

He was deported to Brazil in April 2022.

The refusal to extradite was announced by Brazil’s Justice Minister, Flávio Dino, on Twitter.

He stated that the decision was based on treaties and Law 13.445/2017, and for now, Cherkasov would remain incarcerated in Brazil.

According to judicial sources, Brazil’s Supreme Court has accepted another extradition request from Russia, following Cherkasov expressing a desire to return to his home country.

The extradition is pending completion of ongoing investigations against Cherkasov in Brazil, and executive approval.

Cherkasov had allegedly used a fake Brazilian passport to attempt entry into Europe, aiming to work at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on investigations into war crimes arising from the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The 36-year-old Russian was deported after Dutch authorities accused him of trying to gather information on war crimes cases to relay to Moscow.

Last year, a Brazilian federal court in Sao Paulo sentenced him to 15 years for using the counterfeit document. He was then transferred to a prison in Brasilia.

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reportedly suspects that Cherkasov used a false Brazilian identity for ten years to spy for Moscow across various countries.

The Brazilian prosecutors claim Cherkasov used his counterfeit passport to enter and leave Brazil at least 15 times between 2012 and 2022.

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