Russian national detained in Finland at US request — Russian embassy

A Russian national has been detained in Finland at the US’s request, the consular department of the Russian embassy in Finland said on Thursday.

"On December 15, Finland’s Border Guard authority detained at the Vantaa airport Terada Mira (Oksana Vovk before 2017), a Russian national born 1988 who was on her way from St. Petersburg to Spain. The Finnish authorities notified the Russian side about the incident of the same day. Thus, they said that the woman was detained on the basis of the Interpol arrest warrant issued at the request of the US authorities," said the consular department.

A Russian consular officer visited the woman in Vantaa’s prison on December 17.

"She said that the US accuses her of drug trafficking and money laundering while living in the United States in 2013-2016. She denies her guilt. That is why under the Finnish-US extradition agreement, the Finnish authorities have requested the US side to provide evidence to ground the charges. After analyzing this evidence, the Finnish justice ministry will make a decision on whether the Russian national be deported to the US or released," the Russian embassy said, adding that Washington is to provide the requested document by January 29, 2019.

According to the Russian embassy, a free counsel was appointed for the Russian national. Apart from that, she can contact the embassy and her family.

"The Russian national is kept in standard conditions, with a possibility to have access to medical services, including specialized ones, at Finnish medical establishments. Consular officers have received no complaints from the Russian national. On our part, we asked the Finnish side to pay special attention to her health condition as she has injuries after a car crash," the embassy said.