Criminal Warlord Writes Letter to Putin in Support of Ashot Yegiazaryan

Versia Newspaper writes:

As Versia previously reported, the conflict expanded and now includes Yegiazryan’s business partners who did not think twice to write a letter to Russian Prime Minister. "One of them, living in Switzerland, recently stood up for Yeghiazaryan by sending a bold letter to the Russian prime minister. Moreover, according to our newspaper’s experts, this letter only made things worse for Yegiazaryan.

The letter reads:"... First, with your permission I would like to introduce myself: Luguev Gazi Dzhalalovich, was born in Dagestan, graduated from the Moscow Commercial Institute and worked in the" Centrosoyuz "as Director General of Association "Russia". After the collapse of the Soviet Union I founded the joint-stock company "Real" that operated one of the first private liquor factories in Russia. In 1995 his family moved to Switzerland (Geneva) permanently."

According to the official Interpol and Russian Police records, Mr. Lugaev is one of the top criminal warlords, head of the nutorious Dagestan mafia which concentrates on robberies, theft and kidnappings. Lugaev’s Interpol File number is 18809/EC/76/95.

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Update on September 2, 2010 by Editor

Gazi Lugaev has been responsible for corruption dealings with Saddam Hussein in the 1990s. Please read the Newsweek article which reported the case.

State Duma Deputy and Former Russian PM Have Been Partying In France While Russia Was On Fire

While Russia was choking in the smoke, Ashot Yegiazaryan and Former Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov enjoed the air of Nice.

 The worse for people the better for politicians. Or at least better for some politicians.  Russian political and business elite gathered in Nice for a grand party and fireworks to celebrate the birthday of the State Duma Deputy Ashot Yeghiazaryan.

Image via Lifenews.ru

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State Duma Member Ashot Yegiazaryan “borrowed” $30 mln worth of assets without planning to pay back.

This August, businessman Vitaly Smagin filed a lawsuit to the prosecutor's office, accusing his former partner, a Duma member Ashot Yegiazaryan of embezzling shares in the company which operates one of the Moscow's largest shopping malls, Europark.

According to the statement filed filed by Smagin to the the prosecutor's office, "Ashot Yegiazaryan plotted a criminal act to steal the property which belongs to me.”

The authorities had not commented on the lawsuit, but Ashot Yegiazaryan denied all charges. According to the State Duma deputy, he had sent a statement to the Attorney General's Office, asking to charge Vitaly Smagin for libel and misleading the authorities.  

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Russian Prosecutors To Investigate Charges Against Member of State Duma Ashot Yegiazaryan

Moscow -- Russian businessman Vitaly Smagin has appealed to the Prosecutor’s General Office to open a criminal investigation against Ashot Yegiazaryan, the member of the Russian Duma. According to Smagin, Ashot Yegiazaryan had allegedly seized the businessman’s stake in a large Moscow shopping center. The charges against a State Duma official came amid the broader controversy that shook the Russian Parliament. Earlier this summer, President Medvedev and the government has openly criticized the Duma deputies for routinely ignoring the parliamentary sessions and showing up no more than few times a year and using their position as a cover for business activities.

Russian law provides the members of the State Duma with immunity against criminal charges, a benefit much appreciated by businessmen who find their way into the Duma to protect themselves against possible criminal prosecution.

Smagin’s statement to the Prosecutor General, a copy of which was obtained by Russian News Service, recounted how Yegiazaryan, Smagin’s former partner, forced the businessman to provide his 20 percent-stake in the Europark Shopping Center as a collateral against a loan from Deutsche Bank. Then Yegiazaryan allegedly staged the bankruptcy of the company that received the loan and bought out the nominally-priced collateral from Deutsche Bank through his associates, including his brother Artem Yegiazaryan.

In a phone interview, Vitaly Smagin confirmed the charges against Yegiazaryan and said that the criminal probe was the only choice once he had discovered the fraud. “Mr. Yegiazaryan and his associates had devised the scheme to steal my stake in the Europark Shopping Center,” said Smagin.

In Russia, the bankruptcy and the arranged collateral buy-out are commonly used by corporate raiders. The Europark case is uncommon only because of its price of over $100 mln and the fact that the high-ranking government official is involved. The shopping center, opened in 2005, is one of the largest shopping centers in Russia. It’s located on the prestigious Rublyovskoe Shosse in western Moscow.