The Supreme Court of Cyprus upheld the decision of the previous court not to extradite a Russian citizen suspected of fraud. The woman, who is wanted for the alleged embezzlement of a large sum of public funds, suffers from myasthenia – Cypriot Themis considered her stay in a Russian detention center unsafe for her.

Myasthenia is a chronic incurable autoimmune disease that requires constant medication and medical supervision. Otherwise, exacerbations can threaten the lives of patients. According to the Supreme Court of Cyprus, placing a woman in the conditions of the domestic detention center (SIZO) entails the risk of a violation of Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights in case of extradition (torture, inhuman or degrading treatment).

It is noted that until 2013, the procurement of drugs in Russian pre-trial detention facilities was at 32.8% of the norm and medical equipment at 10.4%; no new data have been reported since then. The court also pointed to the problem of overcrowding in Russian penitentiary institutions: until 2016, women’s pre-trial detention facilities in Moscow had between 2.3 and 2.6 meters of space per person – against the same “problems with medical care”.