Hermitage archaeologist faces extradition to Ukraine on war crimes charges over Crimean excavations

Alexander Butyagin, an archaeologist at the State Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg, was arrested in Poland in early 2026. A Warsaw court approved his extradition to Ukraine in April 2026 on war crimes charges over illegal excavations in occupied Crimea, including seizure of ancient Greek coins, The Art Newspaper and IWPR reported. The Hermitage has not publicly commented.