Beirut Port explosion investigation turns a corner with arrest of MV Rhosus owner

Report by Lara El Hachem, English adaptation by Mariella Succar

Igor Grechushkin, a name closely associated with the Beirut Port explosion, has been detained by Bulgarian authorities.

He is the owner of the Russian-flagged ship MV Rhosus, which docked at the port in 2013 carrying 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate that exploded in 2020.

For years, the reason MV Rhosus entered Beirut remained a mystery.

Documents show that its original route was from Georgia to Mozambique.

Who decided to change the destination—Grechushkin himself or the ship’s captain—remains unclear. Similarly unanswered is why the vessel stopped at two ports before reaching Beirut, in Turkey and Greece.

During the tenure of Judge Ghassan Oweidat, Lebanon’s Public Prosecution charged Grechushkin with sending explosives and violating maritime transport laws.
The investigating judge at the time, Fadi Sawan, issued an absentee arrest warrant that was circulated through Interpol.

Five years later, Bulgarian authorities arrested the Russian-Cypriot ship owner at Sofia Airport. Lebanese courts have now begun preparing to request his questioning. Under Bulgarian law, authorities have a 40-day window to compile the extradition file.

Justice Minister Adel Nassar told LBCI that, under a judicial cooperation agreement between Sofia and Beirut, the Public Prosecution has started preparing the extradition request and will formally ask Bulgarian authorities to transfer the detainee to Lebanon. Nassar said the file is expected to be sent to Bulgaria next week.

While the Public Prosecution handles the legal aspects, the Ministry of Justice is managing technical preparations, including working with a sworn translator to expedite the file and arranging a meeting soon with the Bulgarian ambassador in Beirut.

Nassar also asked Foreign Minister Youssef Rajji to issue instructions to send the judicial file to Bulgaria as soon as it is ready, even if Rajji is in New York.

When the file reaches Sofia, the decision on extradition will rest with Bulgarian authorities. Lebanese courts could also request to question Grechushkin via Zoom, since the investigating judge, Judge Tarek Bitar, is barred from traveling under a decision issued by Oweidat following a case against him.

Whether Grechushkin is extradited or not, proceedings in the Beirut Port explosion case will continue.