Lazarenko hearing is delayed; associate is arrested in California

SAN FRANCISCO - At a June 21 hearing in San Francisco, further proceedings in the case of Pavlo Lazarenko were delayed as Switzerland's request for his extradition has superseded Mr. Lazarenko's petition for political asylum in the U.S. The former prime minister is being held in the Federal Detention Center in Dublin, Calif. The next hearing has been scheduled for July 8.

Meanwhile, news media in the San Francisco area, including the San Francisco Chronicle, have reported that Mr. Lazarenko used a foreign corporation to work out the purchase of an 18-acre Bay Area estate with five swimming pools that is worth nearly $7 million.

In related news, the San Francisco Examiner reported that an associate of Mr. Lazarenko, Petro Kirichenko, 47, was arrested on Friday, June 18, at his northern California home in Tiburon. Citing officials at the FBI, the newspaper noted that Switzerland is seeking Mr. Kirichenko's extradition to face charges of aiding Mr. Lazarenko in laundering public funds. He is accused of helping the former prime minister open Swiss bank accounts.

Mr. Kirichenko also faces U.S. charges for lying to immigration officials when entering this country in 1995. His attorney, George Niespolo, told the Examiner his client is being "persecuted" at the request of officials in Ukraine.

U.S. Magistrate Bernard Zimmerman on June 18 ordered Mr. Kirichenko held in custody pending hearings.

Copyright © The Ukrainian Weekly, July 4, 1999, No. 27, Vol. LXVII

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