Plahotniuc sent his consent for extradition to Moldova to Greek prosecutors on July 29
Vladimir Plahotniuc has officially agreed to be extradited to the Republic of Moldova. His consent was communicated to the Greek authorities through a letter sent by his lawyer to prosecutors. This information was announced by the Prosecutor General's Office (PG) of the Republic of Moldova.
On July 29, 2025, at 1:00 p.m., the Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Moldova was informed that Vladimir Plahotniuc's Greek lawyer had sent a letter to the prosecutors in which Plahotniuc expressed his consent to extradition. This letter is to be examined by the Greek prosecutors, and the Moldovan authorities will be informed of their decision thereafter.
In a press release, the Prosecutor General's Office announced their intention to clarify the speculations regarding Plahotniuc's extradition. To this end, the Prosecutor General's Office provided a timeline of events related to the case:
On July 22, 2025, Vladimir Plahotniuc was detained by the authorities of the Hellenic Republic at Athens International Airport while attempting to leave the country. The Prosecutor General's Office was officially notified of this by the BNC Interpol in Chisinau.
On July 23, 2025, an arrest warrant for Vladimir Plahotniuc was issued for extradition by the prosecutor attached to the Athens Court of Appeal, which is the competent court for this procedure.
On July 24, 2025, the Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Moldova submitted an official extradition request to the Ministry of Justice of Greece, both directly and through diplomatic channels. This request is founded on charges of fraud and money laundering with aggravating circumstances, as well as the establishment and management of a criminal organization. The Prosecutor's Office promptly informed the public about this action.
On July 27, 2025, through the Interpol offices in both countries, the Moldovan authorities learned that Vladimir Plahotniuc had not expressed his consent to extradition.
On July 28, 2025, Greek prosecutors confirmed once again that Plahotniuc's lawyers had not submitted any request on his behalf to the competent authorities.
On July 28, the Prosecutor General's Office had stated that they were informed by the Athens Court of Appeal that Vladimir Plahotniuc, who was detained on July 22 in Greece, "did not express his consent to be extradited to the Republic of Moldova." Lucian Rogac, Plahotniuc's lawyer, claimed that Plahotniuc had addressed a request to the Greek judicial authorities expressing his "explicit will" to be extradited to the Republic of Moldova. The defense attorney contradicted the statement from the Prosecutor General's Office that Plahotniuc had requested the Athens Court of Appeal not to be handed over to the Moldovan authorities.
On the same day, international law expert Alexandru Bot described the information regarding Vladimir Plahotniuc's extradition to the Republic of Moldova as contradictory, noting that only the Greek authorities could provide definitive details about the case, particularly regarding whether or not Plahotniuc had agreed to be handed over to the authorities in Chisinau.
"Given that Plahotniuc has already agreed to be extradited, it will be interesting to see what happens from a legal standpoint, how the Greek state will respond, and, more importantly, how quickly it will unfold," the expert commented for Moldova 1.
When asked about the quickest timeframe for Vladimir Plahotniuc to appear before the court in Chisinau, the expert stated that this "depends on several factors."
We remind you that Vladimir Plahotniuc and former Democratic MP Constantin Țuțu were detained at Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport in Athens while trying to board a flight to Dubai. Plahotniuc was arrested more than six years after he fled Moldova in June 2019.
Moldovan prosecutors are charging him with four offenses: creating an organized criminal group, large-scale money laundering, and fraud, including involvement in the 2013-2015 “bank fraud” case.
Vladimir Plahotniuc and Constantin Țuțu were brought before a court in Athens late last week to be questioned on charges of possessing false documents. The two are currently held in Greece’s largest prison and have been remanded in custody for 40 days.
