NEW YORK, February 19 (RAPSI) Officials at a US prison where Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko is serving a term for drug trafficking are preparing a response to a request for medical assistance for the convict, attorney Alexei Tarasov told RIA Novosti.

“A senior aide to the prison warden said they were working on a response,” Tarasov said.

Last week, the attorney submitted a request for medical attention for Yaroshenko who had been complaining of pre-heart attack symptoms. The Russian Consulate General in New York is insisting on a Russian physician taking part in an examination. Earlier on Tuesday, Yaroshenko had an ECG done at the prison’s medical unit but is unaware of the results.

“We have sent a request to the prison warden by registered mail to provide us with Yaroshenko’s medical history, including ultrasound scans and the ECG results,” Tarasov added.

The request also contains a hand-written note by Yarosheko who is asking for emergency measures to be taken to identify his symptoms that he feels could indicate the risk of a heart attack.

Yaroshenko was arrested in Liberia in an undercover operation in May 2010. In April 2011, Yaroshenko was sentenced to 20 years in prison for colluding to smuggle cocaine into the United States. He was caught after replying to an advertisement posted by US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents who claimed they were selling a cargo plane for $1.

Yaroshenko pleaded not guilty during the trial. He said his poor English prevented him from understanding the nature of the deal. He said he did want to buy a plane, but did not plan to use it to transport drugs.

In June 2013, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York rejected his appeal against a 20-year sentence for drug trafficking. The court ruled that - under the law - neither cruelty on the part of the police nor kidnapping by government agents can be considered sufficient grounds for appealing a verdict.

Yaroshenko refrained from filing an appeal with the US Supreme Court. His refusal was based on a desire to accelerate his transfer to Russia, Yarosheko’s lawyer Aleksei Tarasov told RIA Novosti in November. “If the process starts in the Supreme Court the verdict won’t be deemed final,” the agency quoted the lawyer as having said.
Judicial processes must be deemed final in order to launch extradition proceedings in earnest.