Sofia, Bulgaria – Bulgarian authorities have confirmed the arrest of Russian-Cypriot ship owner Igor Grechushkin, 48, who is wanted in Lebanon in connection with the catastrophic 2020 Beirut port explosion. Grechushkin was apprehended at Sofia International Airport on September 6 after arriving on a flight from Paphos, Cyprus.
The arrest was made based on an Interpol red notice issued five years ago by a Lebanese investigative judge, who also issued a warrant for the vessel’s captain, Boris Prokoshev. According to Zdravko Samuilov, head of the border police at the airport, Grechushkin, who holds dual Russian and Cypriot citizenship, “did not resist arrest, cooperated, and nothing suspicious was found in his luggage.” He has been placed in detention for a maximum of 40 days as Bulgaria awaits the necessary documents for his extradition to Lebanon.
Grechushkin is the owner of the MV Rhosus, the cargo ship that transported 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate to Beirut in 2013. The ship was abandoned in the port after it was deemed unseaworthy, and its explosive cargo was offloaded and stored in a warehouse. The haphazardly stored chemicals are believed to be the cause of the August 4, 2020 blast, which killed at least 218 people, injured over 6,000, and caused billions of dollars in damage.
The arrest marks a significant development in the long-stalled investigation into the explosion, which has been plagued by political interference and legal challenges. While the Lebanese judicial process has faced setbacks, the arrest of Grechushkin in Bulgaria offers a potential path to holding those responsible accountable for one of the largest non-nuclear explosions in history.