Greece extradites Moldovan oligarch in $1 billion fraud case

Greece has extradited Moldovan oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc to Moldova, in a case tied to the disappearance of about $1 billion from three Moldovan banks in 2014, an episode that Moldova has long called the theft of the century. The 59-year-old former senior politician was flown from Athens to Chisinau on Thursday morning and taken to a detention center in the capital, Moldovan officials said.

Plahotniuc fled Moldova in 2019 after his Democratic Party was voted out of power. He faces several long-running criminal cases in Moldova and has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, saying he will prove his innocence. He was escorted from the plane by Moldovan police and Interpol officials and then transported by car to the detention facility, according to accounts from authorities.

His extradition comes just days before Moldova's parliamentary elections, with President Maia Sandu warning that Moldova’s independence and European future are at risk amid what she described as Russia’s attempts to foment violence and spread disinformation. In a social media post, Sandu wrote: "If you don't give up when it's hard and keep fighting - the whole society keeps fighting - even criminals who seemed invincible come to justice." The remarks reflected the broader charge that Moldova’s vote could shape its trajectory toward the European Union or closer ties with Moscow.

Plahotniuc is one of the principal suspects in the 2014 theft, when the missing funds were reported to amount to more than 10% of Moldova’s gross domestic product at the time. His extradition underlines the fragile coalition between Moldova’s push for European integration and a domestic political scene poised between pro-European and pro-Russian factions.

The case has become a political flashpoint in a country that has accused Moscow of trying to influence the vote by flooding Moldova with disinformation and cash. Sandu has said Moscow has deployed hundreds of millions of euros to sow disorder and undermine Moldova’s pro-EU government. In parallel, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, addressing the U.N. General Assembly, warned that Europe could not afford to lose Moldova to Russian influence and that Russia’s war would continue unless stopped, a message aimed at rallying support for Moldova and its neighbors against Moscow’s aims.

Moldovan authorities have also highlighted Russia-linked influence operations inside the country. The BBC has reported on a network tied to Moscow and fugitive Moldovan businessman Ilan Shor that paid people to post disinformation online ahead of the vote, a move the broadcaster said sought to undermine the governing party’s legitimacy. Shor has not responded to requests for comment.

The extradition comes amid Moldova’s ongoing struggle with its own borders and identity. Moldova declared independence with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 and is home to a substantial Russian-speaking population. The breakaway region of Transnistria remains propped up by Moscow, with Russian troops still stationed there, complicating Moldova’s security and political dynamics as it seeks closer ties with the European Union.

Analysts note that the outcome of Moldova’s elections could determine whether the country accelerates its European integration or slips back toward Russia’s orbit, a dynamic that continues to draw international attention as the region faces broader geopolitical tensions. In Moldova, the question of how to balance anti-corruption prosecutions with political stability remains central to the country’s immediate future, especially in a vote that could reshape leadership and policy direction in the coming years.