Arcadi Gaydamak's attorney Pierre-Daniel Eggly attributed his arrest to alleged financial violations in France.
AP reports that France is demanding the extradition of Arcadi Gaydamak from Switzerland, where he was arrested last week during a visit to arbitrate a disputed business deal.
Gaydamak's attorney Pierre-Daniel Eggly attributed his arrest to alleged financial violations in France, and not the Angola weapons trafficking incident, known in France as Angola-gate. Other reports say Luxembourg asked the Swiss to arrest the Israeli-Russian businessman following a financial dispute with Luis Fernandez who was manager of Beitar Jerusalem when Gaydamak owned the football team.
In October 2009 a French court sentenced Gaydamak and his French associate Pierre Falcone to six years in prison for guns trafficking to Angola. Former interior minister, Senator Charles Pasqua was given one year in prison and a two-year suspended sentence.
Gaydamak left Israel for Russia in 2009 but in the past few years has spent much of his time back at his Caesarea villa.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on November 27, 2013
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