Mother of kidnapped girl to be extradited to France
Published: 15 April, 2009, 22:53
Irina Belenkaya (L) in court in Budapest on April 15, 2009 (AFP Photo / Attila Kisbenedek)
(11.6Mb) embed videoTAGS: Children, Conflict, Crime
A Hungarian court has ruled that the Russian citizen Irina Belenkaya, accused of kidnapping her daughter, is to be extradited to France in 40 days.
“For 40 days Irina will be staying in Hungary. During this time, France will have to provide all necessary documents,” press attaché of the Russian Embassy in Hungary Irina Zvonova was quoted by Interfax news agency as saying.
The extradition request has not been finalized yet and for the moment, the court extended Belenkaya’s arrest to May 25. If the request is not ready by then, the woman will be set free.
Belenkaya’s lawyer Robert Fridman said he hopes that, due to efforts of Russian diplomacy, France will cancel their decision. In the meantime he is collecting all necessary documentation.
Anatoly Kucherena, Russia’s Public Chamber member said that the main task of the Russian side now is not to allow Belenkaya’s extradition to France.
“I am going to Budapest to talk to Irina and to have a look at the court’s decision,” he said. “We will decide which documents we will need not to allow Irina’s extradition to France.”
During the trial, Belenkaya refused to plead guilty and declined the judge’s proposal of fast extradition. She said that she does not care what will happen with her but said that her child is now in danger.
"I'm pleased with the court's decision which lets me stay here in Hungary for around a month and I hope france will sort out what happened," Belenkaya said. "I think my ex husband is a manic – he had a pistol which he threatened me with. I don't think the French press or public knows about that.'"
Three-year-old Elise, or Liza, was kidnapped on March 20 from her French father Jean-Michel André on their way back from kindergarten. Her father was severely beaten by three men. André claimed Liza’s Russian mother Irina Belenkaya was involved in the kidnapping.
On April 13, Belenkaya was arrested in Hungary while attempting to cross the border to Ukraine with her daughter. The girl was returned to her French father on Monday.
15.04.2009, 22:41
5 comments
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Thank you, Jean-Claude. I totally agree with you. The girl is a Russian citizen for God's sake! And she was just returning home with her mother. It'll be strange if French court doesn't take this simple fact into consideration. It would be illogical at the very least. And you are right that nobody asked the girl. I remember similar cases though and it seems to me French court has never been on a mother's side. We'll see what happens now. I think diplomats and human rights activists should be involved. It's so cruel to separate a loving mother and her child. Nobody is checking whether the father is so desperate to bring up his daughter or he's simply taking a revenge. If he loved his child he wouldn't want to do such harm to her as he is doing now: kidnapping her and placing her Mother in jail. He'll reap what he sows.
It seems to me that this sad story is an other blow to good and sincere russian-french relations. I am surprised to see how quickly, the french autorities reacted to that affair (in most cases, they are so bad and so slow). Noone seems to be concerned about the happyness of that lovely little girl. Peraphs than someone should take that into consideration and kindly ask her: Do you want to go with mommy or dady ? Just, looking at TVs' pictures, it seems to me that she prefer to be with her mother. Logically, since she was born in Russia; she is russian citizen before anything else. Her country's justice did not declare her mother unfit to rise and love her and gave the costudy to Irina Belenkaya. The father got that same costudy from the french autorities but the baby was born in Russia. It is up to the two justice'systems, jointly, to impose a visit rights for the father. Liza is not responsable for the adults' stupidity and the russian autorities must make sure that this case (one among many similar others) does not become a political show. Hungary is a EU member in serious economic troubles; it is also the nation from where come Sarkozy'descents. That son and grand'son of hungarian aristocrats hate the little people and everything close to Russia or ex-Soviet-Union. He is an opportunist, cynical and machiavelic comedian. To improve his pool's rating or his chance to move to the Versailles-palace, he will do anything and fool anyone ( he has done it already so many times). I hope that this sad affair end up well for Liza and serve of lesson for the young russian girls who do not need to marry old idiot european or american men to have a better life. Sincerely. Jean-Claude Meslin Tel: +33450240275
I will never understand why idiots who make comments as ridiculeous as those from SocialistRepublik hide behind a pseudo. What kind of courage is that ! Peraphs is he related to Jean-Michel Andre !