Valentin Tsvetkov, who governed the remote Magadan Region in northeast Siberia, rich in gold and silver reserves and fishing resources, was shot dead near his representative office in downtown Moscow October 18, 2002.
"[Alexander] Zakharov, charged with murdering Governor Tsvetkov as part of an organized group will be delivered by the Madrid-Moscow flight to Sheremetyevo-2 airport at 7:30 p.m. Moscow time (3:30 p.m. GMT) August 17," the police spokesman said.
The two suspects, Zakharov and Martin Babakekhyan, both on an international wanted list since May 2003, were arrested in Spain in July 2006.
The police spokesman said Spanish judiciaries decided to extradite Zakharov, 37, in March. An extradition ruling on Babakekhyan is still expected.
Two other suspects, Masis Akhunts and Artur Anisimov, are currently serving jail terms for other grave crimes.
The inquiry focused on Magadan's gold mining industry, which received special federal investment in 1995. Seven years later, only part of the money had been returned to the federal budget, and Tsvetkov was proactively working to pay back the funds.
