A former US soldier has been extradited from Ukraine on charges of participating in an “international crime wave” that began more than five years ago.
Craig Austin Lang, 34, made his first court appearance Monday in Fort Myers, Florida, in connection with the numerous charges he faces in three federal districts, according to the Department of Justice. The charges relate to double homicide, armed robbery, making false statements on a passport application and aggravated identity theft, among other charges.
Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole Argentieri said Lang “went on an international crime spree” in a statement.
“Lang’s alleged conduct is shocking in its scope and in its callous disregard for human life. His mistake, however, was no match for the efforts of dedicated law enforcement and prosecutors in the United States and abroad to investigate, locate, arrest and extradite Lang so that he could face justice in United States courts,” Argentieri said.
The department said he was extradited to the United States after the European Court of Human Rights rejected his request to avoid extradition. He was escorted by the FBI to the US
He faces charges in the Middle District of Florida, the Eastern District of North Carolina and the District of Arizona. The Florida indictments accuse Lang, along with co-defendant Alex Jared Zwiefelhofer, of murdering a couple in 2018.
Lang and Zwiefelhofer, who met in Ukraine in 2017, are accused of killing the couple during an armed robbery. The couple allegedly intended to buy firearms from Lang and Zwiefelhofer, but instead the two defendants stole the $3,000 with which the couple was going to buy the weapons, prosecutors said.
He is charged in North Carolina with conspiracy to commit passport fraud and aggravated identity theft, as well as other identity-related charges. The Justice Department said he was allegedly trying to avoid detection and scrutiny from authorities while traveling internationally.
Lang is also accused of passport misuse in Arizona for allegedly showing a U.S. passport to Mexican authorities to obtain a Mexican visa, according to the Department of Justice.
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