ZCZC
BCN-17
RUSSIA-ECONOMY-KREMLIN
Russia probes a former MP critical of Kremlin
MOSCOW, June 27, 2019 (AFP) – Russian investigators Thursday launched a
criminal probe against the founder of one of the country’s top car
dealerships — a former lawmaker who contravened Kremlin policies and opposed
the annexation of Crimea.
Sergei Petrov, who founded Rolf, a network of foreign car dealerships,
also served as a lawmaker in the Russian parliament between 2007 and 2016.
He was one of the few independent-minded deputies in the country’s rubber-
stamp legislature.
He did not vote against a number of controversial Kremlin initiatives and
did not take part in a vote on the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
Petrov told Russian media that the case against him could be part of a
“hostile takeover” or may be a politically motivated attack.
On Thursday, the Investigative Committee, which reports directly to
President Vladimir Putin, accused Petrov and several other top Rolf managers
of illegally syphoning off 4 billion rubles ($63.5 million) out of Russia in
2014.
Investigators raided the company’s offices in Moscow and Saint Petersburg
and questioned Rolf employees, they said in a statement.
Spokespeople for Rolf were not immediately available for comment but
Petrov said he was currently abroad and was not planning to return to Russia.
“In the absence of independent courts it would not be prudent to return,”
Petrov said on liberal Echo of Moscow radio.
He said that investigators have been training their sights on his company
for the past two years.
“They have constantly been seizing something, looking for something. They
needed to find an excuse (to launch a probe),” he said.
Petrov rubbished the investigators’ claims but added he would look into
the 2014 transaction.
“I had no idea about it. Perhaps someone made some mistakes — we don’t
know. We’ll look into them.”
The probe is the latest in a long line of cases in which top Russian
business people have been accused of crimes motivated by commercial or
political interests.
Businessmen in the country have long complained about a poor investment
climate in Russia marred by corruption, impunity of law enforcement agencies
and the lack of independent courts.
In February, US businessman Michael Calvey, the founder of one of the
oldest private equity firms focusing on Russia, was placed under house arrest
on fraud charges.
A number of prominent Russian businesspeople have been forced into exile.
BSS/AFP/HR/0950