Russia frees Israeli-Canadian racer wanted by US

A Russian court on Saturday freed Israeli-Canadian citizen Joshua Cartu who was arrested earlier this week at the request of the US over alleged financial crimes.

Dubbed "Ferrari fugitive", the racing car driver and entrepreneur has been accused along with his brothers of defrauding investors of millions of dollars.

He was detained on Monday by Russia's Interpol unit at Saint Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport after being declared "wanted" by the US.

Saint Petersburg's Moskovsky District court ruled to "terminate proceedings" against Cartu, saying Russian authorities had not received an official extradition request.

Russia does not have an extradition treaty with the United States, but the countries last month exchanged prisoners in a major swap.

A court earlier this week kept him in detention because, as an Israeli citizen, he could freely travel out of Russia.

The Saint Petersburg court press service said Cartu was under an Interpol Red Notice due to accusations he was part of a group that defrauded investors in the US of around $60 million between 2013 and 2017.

The US government in 2021 filed a fraud complaint against Cartu and others including his brothers, David and Jonathan, over conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

Cartu's social media accounts on Instagram and Facebook are followed by hundreds of thousands. They feature glossy images of a luxury lifestyle with race cars.

In interviews with British media he has described himself as a race car and tech entrepreneur with his own fleet of Ferraris.

Canada's foreign ministry said on Tuesday that it was "aware of an arrest involving a Canadian in Russia" and had offered consular assistance.