Platon was arrested in Kyiv on July 25 after Moldova issued a warrant for his arrest. Platon faces charges of fraud and money laundering in relation to a scheme to siphon 800 million Moldovan lei (US$ 40.5 million) from Moldova’s Banca de Enconomii.
Banca de Economii and two other banks linked to Platon were forced to close in the aftermath of a November 2014 scandal that saw roughly US$ 1 billion disappear offshore from local accounts. The event triggered street protests in the Moldovan capital Chisinau.
Platon had challenged his arrest in Ukrainian courts. A US law firm had also sought to delay his extradition, saying that he was a witness in US authorities’ own investigation into the missing money, according to a letter published in Ukrainian media.
OCCRP partner RISE Moldova reported in July that Platon was in the process of attempting to take over yet another Moldovan bank in the months prior to his arrest.
