A Russian travel agent accused of defrauding clients has been extradited from Cambodia to Russia to face criminal charges, according to Russian investigators.
Elena Melentyeva, from Nizhnekamsk, allegedly took money from clients without providing the promised travel services. She was extradited on October 23 at the request of Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office.
Melentyeva left Russia in 2014 and was subsequently placed on an international wanted list.
In 2019, reports said she had been located in the village of Kosharitsa, Bulgaria, where she was also involved in the tourism business and souvenir sales. However, she was not extradited to Russia at the time and later left for an unknown destination.
According to the Prosecutor General’s Office, Melentyeva entered into contracts with 21 clients in 2014 to select, book and pay for travel packages worth more than 1.6 million roubles in total.
However, the services were allegedly never provided.
Investigators also alleged that she borrowed 2.6 million roubles from two individuals without intending to repay the money.
A criminal case was brought against Melentyeva under provisions of the Russian Criminal Code relating to fraud, including Articles 159 and 159.4, according to the report.
