SOFIA: Bulgarian authorities have arrested a shipowner wanted in connection with the catastrophic 2020 Beirut port explosion that killed more than 220 people.
Igor Grechushkin is among three individuals subject to Interpol red notices for their alleged involvement in the ammonium nitrate shipment that detonated at the Lebanese port.
The massive explosion on August 4, 2020 injured over 6,500 people and caused widespread destruction across large sections of the Lebanese capital.
Beirut officials identified Grechushkin, a 48-year-old Russian-Cypriot national, as the owner of the Rhosus vessel that transported the volatile chemical cargo.
A Sofia city court spokeswoman confirmed that Grechushkin remains in detention for up to 40 days following a September 7 court ruling that was upheld on appeal.
Bulgarian law provides the requesting authorities with a 40-day window to submit all necessary documentation to proceed with the extradition process.
Grechushkin was apprehended on an Interpol red notice at Sofia airport on September 5 after arriving on a flight from Paphos in Cyprus.
The Moldovan-flagged Rhosus cargo ship had originally sailed from Georgia en route to Mozambique before delivering the fertiliser to Beirut in 2013.
The vessel encountered technical difficulties upon arrival in Lebanon and was subsequently impounded following a lawsuit filed by a local company against its owner.
Port authorities transferred the ammonium nitrate to a dilapidated warehouse with visible wall cracks, where it remained stored until the catastrophic detonation.
The Rhosus ultimately sank in Beirut port in 2018, five years before the stored chemicals caused one of history’s largest non-nuclear explosions. – AFP
