Khodorkovsky 'flying to Germany' after Putin pardon

BBC News

Russian ex-tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky is flying to Germany, hours after being pardoned by President Vladimir Putin, Russian news agencies report.

Mr Khodorkovsky had requested travel papers to see his sick mother who is being treated there, RIA Novosti quoted prison officials as saying.

Mr Putin signed a decree earlier pardoning Mr Khodorkovsky on the basis of "the principles of humanity".

Mr Khodorkovsky, 50, had been in custody for a decade.

The former head of the now defunct oil giant Yukos, who was once Russia's richest man, had been jailed for tax evasion and theft after funding opposition parties.

'Personal request'

Mr Khodorkovsky left the penal colony where he was being held, in the Karelia region of north-western Russia, early on Friday afternoon.

Russia's Federal Penal Service, quoted by news agency Interfax, said: "In the course of his release, Khodorkovsky asked for a passport for foreign travel. His request was met.

"Once he was released from prison, he left for Germany, where his mother is undergoing treatment.

"We stress that the flight took place at his request and his exit documents were processed at his personal request."

Mr Khodorkovsky's mother, Marina, 79, has been undergoing treatment in Germany, although her current whereabouts are not certain.

Interfax quoted Mr Khodorkovsky's press-secretary, Olga Pispanen, as saying she was unaware of his whereabouts.

Ms Pispanen also told the Associated Press that, as of Thursday, his mother was in Moscow.

Mr Khodorkovsky was jailed after being convicted of stealing oil and laundering money in 2010.

He had been in prison since 2003 when he was arrested and later convicted on charges of tax evasion. He was due to be released next August.

The presidential pardon came after Russian MPs on Wednesday backed a wide-ranging amnesty for at least 20,000 prisoners.

Mr Putin confirmed it would apply to the two members of punk band Pussy Riot still in prison and Greenpeace activists detained for their protest at a Russian oil rig in the Arctic.

Analysts say Mr Putin may be trying to ease international criticism of Russia's human rights record ahead of February's Winter Olympics in Sochi.