Bulgarian police have detained Igor Grechushkin, the Russian businessman whose ship carried the ammonium nitrate that triggered the 2020 Beirut port explosion, local media reported on Tuesday.
Grechushkin, who resides in Cyprus, was arrested in Sofia for possible extradition to Lebanon, where he is wanted in connection with the blast that killed more than 200 people and devastated large parts of the capital. Bulgaria’s prosecutor’s office confirmed the detention of a Russian-Cypriot dual citizen with the initials I.G. and said the Sofia City Court ruled he could be held for up to 40 days while Lebanon submits its extradition request, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Lebanon placed Grechushkin on Interpol’s wanted list in 2020. However, the investigation into the causes of the explosion has been plagued by delays, with families of victims accusing politicians of obstructing justice. The inquiry, led by Judge Tarek Bitar, resumed earlier this year but has yet to issue an indictment.
The 2020 blast, one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history, was caused by improperly stored chemicals that arrived in Beirut aboard Grechushkin’s vessel.
