Russian Igor Grechushkin, who was detained in connection with the August 4, 2020, port explosion in Beirut, has been released in Bulgaria. The release was confirmed by his lawyer, Ekaterina Dimitrova, on March 20.
“Igor was released,” Dimitrova stated. “To leave the country, he needed to obtain the original of the court’s decision and lift the travel ban, which took another 1-2 weeks (from the end of January after the appeal). All this time he was already at large.”
Grechushkin was identified as the owner of the Rhosus ship that exploded in Beirut. The incident killed 137 people, injured approximately 5,000 individuals, and left many missing. Over 300,000 homes were destroyed or damaged, hundreds of buildings were affected, and the damage totaled several billion dollars.
Lebanese judicial authorities placed Grechushkin on a wanted list and detained him on September 16, 2025. The Russian Foreign Ministry reported that it was monitoring the situation and that its embassy’s consular staff would be available to assist if necessary.
