WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th October, 2021) Venezuelan diplomat Alex Saab who was extradited from Cape Verde to the United States will appear before the court in Florida on Monday, US Department of Justice spokesperson Nicole Navas Oxman told Sputnik.
The official confirmed that Saab was extradited on Saturday to stand trial in Florida over corruption and embezzlement charges pressed in July 2019.
"He is expected to make his initial court appearance on Monday, October 18, at 1:00 p.m. (17:00 GMT) before U.S. Magistrate Judge John J. O'Sullivan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida," Oxman said.
The spokesperson also noted that the extradition was conducted "in full compliance with all relevant Cabo Verdean laws and court rulings."
Saab had been detained in Cape Verde in June 2020 on a US extradition warrant connected to accusations of Iran sanctions violations. The diplomat left the country on Saturday aboard a plane bound for the United States.
Venezuelan Vice President of Communication, Culture and Tourism Alfred Nazareth denounced his extradition as "kidnapping" and accused Cape Verde of violating the diplomat's human rights for nearly 500 days, during his arbitrary detention without an arrest warrant or due process. Saab's legal defense team, in turn, has called the extradition a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
