Bout claims he did nothing wrong and wants to be tried in a Thai court. He flew from Moscow to Bangkok as a tourist and was arrested the day he arrived.
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Arms Dealer Bout Denied Bail in Thailand
A Thai court turned down Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout's request to be freed on bail for the duration of the investigation (up to 84 days) on Saturday. The U.S. Justice Department wants Bout extradited to the United States. Russian Ambassador to Thailand Evgeny Afanasyev met with Thai Foreign Minister Noppadon Pattama to try to have Bout turned over to Russia.
According to Thai media, Bout claims he did nothing wrong and wants to be tried in a Thai court. He flew from Moscow to Bangkok on March 6 as a tourist, he claims. He was arrested in the Sofitel Hotel in Bangkok the day he arrived. The Thai police say that he came for negotiations with the Colombian rebel group FARC. If that allegation is proven, Bout could face 10 years in prison in Thailand or 15 year's prison in the U.S.
Bout has been linked by American officials to rebels, dictators and terrorists in the Middle east and Africa as well. In 2003, he was placed on a UN Security Council list of persons subject to travel restrictions for participating in the conflict in Sierra Leone and for supporting Liberian dictator Charles Taylor. He was allegedly paid for arms sold in Sierra Leone with diamonds mined by slaves.
In 2006, U.S. President George W. Bush froze Bout's assets in various countries. Those assets, mainly small airlines, were estimated to be worth $6 billion by his business partner Andrey Smulyan. That year, a plane belonging to Bout and registered in Kyrgyzstan was photographed by the Associated Press in the rebel-control airport in Mogadishu, Somalia, carrying a load of hand-launch missiles.
Smulyan was arrested in Bangkok along with Bout, but later released. He is listed in U.S. documents as the contact through whom U.S. agents posing as FARC representatives set up a meeting. Smulyan's current whereabouts are unknown.
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