Tbilisi City Court approved on September 4 the prosecution’s request to extradite Russian citizen Mikhail Timofeyev, a former aide and political associate of imprisoned ex-Khabarovsk Governor Sergei Furgal, to Russia, as the defense sees the extradition request as politically motivated and fears he may face ill-treatment if handed over to Moscow.
The ruling comes amid wider concerns that Georgian authorities are resuming extraditions to Russia following a temporary suspension. Timofeyev, whom Russia accuses of involvement in the alleged murders and attempted murders of businessmen in the early 2000s, among others, already finds himself in poor health, lawyers say.
Timofeyev, 60, has been detained in Georgia since January based on an Interpol Red Notice issued in April 2024. His lawyers, however, say Interpol first blocked and then had annulled the notice as of September 2025, arguing that his detention in 2026 is therefore unlawful. He was also denied international protection in Georgia after authorities and the court argued that his case did not demonstrate political motives behind his prosecution, according to the lawyers.
Timofeyev previously spent eight years in a Russian prison after being sentenced on extortion charges in 2013. European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) subsequently found violations concerning his treatment and detention.
The prosecution and the court reportedly ruled out political motives, deeming the guarantees provided by Russian authorities regarding Timofeyev’s rights acceptable, a conclusion his lawyers dispute.
Rusudan Mtchedlishvili, one of Timofeyev’s lawyers, told Civil.ge that the defense has seven days to appeal the first-instance court’s ruling to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court will then have five days to rule on the appeal. Should it uphold the lower court’s decision, the final decision on whether to allow the extradition will rest with the Justice Minister. Timofeyev’s defense is also considering applying to the ECtHR for an interim measure to prevent his transfer.
According to Mtchedlishvili, Timofeyev suffers from several health issues, including neurological and cardiological problems and a herniated disc, and requires the use of a crutch. The lawyer also said he is a vegetarian and has a permanent disability status, which he was assigned while serving time in prison in Russia, adding to the concerns about his treatment and health if extradited.
Further concerns include the lack of effective international mechanisms to monitor Timofeyev’s treatment in Russia, particularly given Russia’s exclusion from the Council of Europe in 2022 and its subsequent withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights.
Human rights advocate and Georgia’s former Deputy Ombudsperson Giorgi Burjanadze has criticized the planned extradition to Russia, referring to a 2025 ECtHR ruling where the Georgian government is cited as maintaining that “no individual had been extradited” to Russia since its Council of Europe membership had ceased in 2022. In the ruling, Georgian authorities are also cited as stressing “their commitment to maintaining that moratorium until a European consensus was reached on the issue.”
Burjanadze further cited data from Russia’s Prosecutor’s Office about Tbilisi approving at least three extradition requests in 2026.
“Transferring prisoners to Russia carries a risk of human rights violations, with no guarantees that their fundamental rights will be protected. Russia is no longer a party to the European Convention, and unfortunately, Georgia has no leverage to protect people once they are transferred,” Burjanadze said.
According to the Russian investigative outlet The Insider, Timofeyev was a close ally of Sergei Furgal, who served as governor of Khabarovsk Krai from 2018 to 2020 under the ultranationalist Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR).
Furgal was arrested in 2020 and later sentenced to 22 years in prison for allegedly organizing the murders of business competitors in 2004–2005. His arrest sparked mass protests in Khabarovsk, with supporters claiming the case was politically motivated and “punishment for daring to beat the Kremlin’s candidate in elections.”
Following Furgal’s arrest, Timofeyev left Russia and was later charged in absentia in a case involving murders and attempted murders of businessmen from the same period. According to The Insider, in 2021, Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office claimed that Timofeyev was a member of an organized group allegedly created by Furgal and his business partner, Nikolai Mistryukov, to eliminate business rivals. He was subsequently placed on a wanted list.
Timofeyev has reportedly sought protection abroad since 2020, first fleeing to China, then attempting to obtain asylum in Thailand, before arriving in Georgia in 2024.
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