Russia to appeal Interpol's refusal to declare Browder internationally wanted - source
MOSCOW. March 17 (Interfax) - Russia is determined to take new steps to have businessman William Browder, whom Moscow has accused of massive fraud, put on the international wanted list, a source familiar with the situation told Interfax on Tuesday.
"Interpol's decision to refuse to declare Browder internationally wanted on political grounds will be appealed in a court and a higher body," the source said.
Russian law enforcement bodies "are ready to provide all materials attesting to a criminal nature of Browder's activities aimed at embezzling Gazprom's assets," the source said.
"Russian representatives are determined to prove that there is no political background in the Hermitage Capital CEO's prosecution," he said.
Interpol's Secretariat General declined Russia's Red Notice request for Browder in August 2013, based on an independent commission's conclusions that the businessman's prosecution in Russia was politically motivated.
The Russian Prosecutor General's Office reported earlier that its representatives had taken part in the commission's meeting in Lyon in January 2014 to present a report substantiating Browder's prosecution, and the commission decided to review its recommendation on declining Russia's request on issuing a Red Notice for Browder. However, no final decision on the matter has still been made.
Moscow's Tverskoi District Court found Browder guilty of tax evasion amounting to over 522 million rubles and sentenced him to 9 years in prison in July 2013.
The Russian Interior Ministry's Investigative Department is currently investigating a criminal case in which Browder has been accused of fraud involving Gazprom shares causing the state material damage amounting to about 6 billion rubles.