VENEZUELA has given the United States 60 days to ask for the extradition of fugitive Malaysian businessman Leonard Glenn Francis, aka “Fat Leonard,” who is implicated in a US Navy bribery case, Reuters reported today.

Francis will be released should the American authorities fail to make the request, supported by evidence of the man’s crimes, the Venezuelan Supreme Court ruled on October 13.

He was arrested at the Simon Bolívar International Airport as he was about to board a flight for Russia, after the US government issued an Interpol red notice for him.

Francis had escaped house arrest in the US ahead of his sentencing in September.

He had fled to Mexico before arriving in Venezuela, where he was reported to have sought asylum.– October 21, 2022.