Former Ukrainian MP Oleksandr Shepelev and his wife have asked for political asylum in Hungary.
A decision concerning their request is expected by Wednesday, Radio Liberty reported quoting Magyar Nemzet, a Hungarian newspaper.
In Ukraine, Shepelev is accused of attempted murder and embezzlement of bank funds, and his wife is charged with a financial crime, both of them deny the accusations, Radio Liberty said.
Earlier, a court in Budapest ruled that Shepelev should be extradited to Ukraine by Aug. 14. He was detained in Budapest in early July on an Interpol warrant.
Shepelev is a former MP of the Yulia Tymoshenko Bloc and the Party of Regions. Last year, he ran for parliament in a single mandate constituency in Vinnytsia region as a self-nominee, but failed to get a parliamentary seat.
According to the Dzerkalo Tyzhnia (Mirror Weekly) newspaper, the Ukrainian prosecutor’s office is interested in Shepelev as the man “who could shed light on the financial schemes of the government of Yulia Tymoshenko” and “could dig up some dirt on the influential groups around President Viktor Yanukovych.”
