The United States is demanding a man from Bosnia and Herzegovina be extradited on the basis he helped the indicted son of a Russian governor close to Vladimir Putin escape house arrest earlier this year.
The prison-break incident
The alleged prison-break happened in Italy in March, after an Italian judge ruled to extradite Artem Uss, 40, to the US to be prosecuted for allegedly shipping military technologies bought from US manufacturers to Russian buyers.
His crime
Uss, the son of recently resigned Krasnoyarsk Krai Gov. Aleksandr Uss was charged in 2022, and after being found guilty, was filmed fleeing his home detention in Milan on March 22, with the assistance of several individuals including Vladimir Jovancic, 51.
Jovancic – one of six men allegedly affiliated with a Serbian organized crime group recruited by Uss – was taken into custody in Croatia Monday, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn just announced.
U.S. wants Jovancic
He is now being held on charges of helping Artem Uss flee Italy to Russia – where fed say he posted to social media celebrating his safe return – ahead of his impending extradition to the States.
December 4 letter
In a December 4 letter to the US District judge handling the case, prosecutors demanded Jovancic be detained once he arrives in the US to ensure he will be tried.
In the same correspondence, feds included a single surveillance still showing the pair strolling out of Artem Uss’s home in Milan, before describing how they allegedly used bolt cutters, 50,000 euros and a cross-country car trip to evade extradition.
Addressed to United States District Judge Rachel P. Kovner, the letter begins: ‘The government writes regarding defendant Vladimir Jovancic, who has been charged in the above-referenced indictment.’
It goes on to add that the suspected mobster ‘has been taken into custody in Croatia and will undergo extradition proceedings to the United States.’
