Suspected arms dealer Viktor Bout arrives at the Bangkok Criminal Court to hear whether he would be extradited to the U.S.

Infamously dubbed the "Merchant of Death," Bout was arrested after arriving from Moscow to a Bangkok hotel, during a Thai-American sting operation in March last year.

U.S. prosecutors say Bout has been trafficking arms since the 1990s, using a fleet of cargo planes to send weapons to Africa, South America, and the Middle East, among others.

He arrived in handcuffs with his ankles shackled, but looked healthy. He’s been fighting for his innocence, and says he was illegally detained by Thai and American officials. He has no expectations as to whether he would face trial in the U.S.

[Viktor Bout, Suspected Arms Dealer]:
"No expectation. Well, today is exactly the same. The sun is shinning, and the birds are singing."

U.S. authorities want Bout extradited to New York, where he is expected to stand trial for conspiracy of selling millions of dollars of weapons to Colombia's FARC rebels. The U.S. says the weapons could be used to kill Americans in Colombia.

Bout says he has never been to the U.S. or Colombia, and has never committed any crime there.

According to the United Nations and the U.S. Treasury, Bout has sold or brokered arms that have helped fuel wars in Afghanistan, Angola, Rwanda, Sierra Leone and Sudan.