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Margherita Stancati: So at a time when the US is looking at potential prisoner exchanges, he was seen as a potentially very valuable asset in that sense. Margherita Stancati: The Department of Justice begins investigating Artem Uss and his business partners, and if you read the indictment against them, it reads a bit like a how-to-evade-US-sanctions guide.
Margherita Stancati: For the US, Artem Uss was a perfect example of someone who had been successfully evading US sanctions. So it was both a message to others who were trying to evade sanctions, but also stopping this very sensitive technology from reaching Russia. But also at a time when there are Americans wrongfully detained in Russia, having Russians imprisoned in the West could potentially serve another purpose, which is that of potential prisoner swaps.
Margherita Stancati: The stakes for him were huge. If extradited to the US and convicted he faced up to 30 years in prison. Uss also had a wife and a six-year-old son who lived in Moscow. He had family in Russia, so the incentives for him to flee were extremely high. Margherita Stancati: Italy has an overburdened justice system that heavily relies on house arrest, and that's especially true for financial crimes. Putting someone behind bars, especially if before trial, is extremely rare, especially for people who have a home to stay in.
Kate Linebaugh: On the 21st of March there was a big development. A Milan court approved the extradition of Artem Uss to the US. The next day, the Carabinieri checked on him in the morning, but at 1:52 PM authorities got a signal from his ankle bracelet. Artem Uss had left his apartment. Police headed over but when they got there, it was too late. Now that Artem Uss had left the apartment, he couldn't be tracked.