Finnish district court upholds travel ban on Russian opposition leader

The Northern Karelia District Court of Finland decided on Monday to uphold the travel ban imposed on Russian opposition leader Vasili Popov, Finnish media reported.

Vasili Popov, leader of the opposition United Democratic Party (Yabloko) of Russia, has been detained by Finnish police since last August, at the request of Russian authorities on suspicion of real estate fraud conducted in Petrozavodsk, the capital of the Russian republic of Karelia.

Popov denied the allegations, saying that the custody is a case of political persecution.

He has also been slapped with a travel ban by the Northern Karelia District Court of Finland since then. He asked the court earlier to release the ban to allow him traveling to certain European countries such as Spain, Sweden, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

However, the court decided on Monday to retain the ban on Popov, saying that there is no reason to change the decision, according to Finnish national broadcaster Yle.

According to the decision, Popov is still not allowed to leave Finland.

Russia has demanded extradition of Popov from Finland to his home country for trial. The final decision will be made by the Finnish Ministry of Justice, said Yle.

Popov, a businessman, relocated to Finland in early 2015. In March this year, he applied for asylum in Finland amid the period of his detention.

Source: XINHUA