Ukraine seizes assets of Russian businessmen Fridman, Deripaska, Shelkov
MOSCOW. July 8 (Interfax) - Ukrainian law enforcement agencies have seized at least than UAH33 billion ($1.1 billion at current exchange rate) worth of assets of Russian and Belarusian citizens, including those of Russian businessmen Mikhail Fridman, Oleg Deripaska and Mikhail Shelkov companies, Ukraine's prosecutor general, Iryna Venediktova reported.
"Our objective is to identify, see connections, not allow replacement of owners, seize, make sure that property or money is transferred to the control of the Ukrainian state," Venediktova wrote on Facebook, which is banned in Russia.
In addition to the UAH33 billion in appraised assets, the exact value is still being established of seized corporate rights of businesses, 13 airplanes, a helicopter, 10 vessels, almost 19,000 railcars, 26 gas suppliers, more than 200 filling stations, 11 tank farms, hundreds of vehicles, land parcels and buildings, and other assets and property, she said.
Through court orders, the authorities have managed to seize about UAH469 million in accounts and securities worth about UAH12 billion from companies affiliated with Fridman, Venediktova said.
The head of the Demurinsky Mining and Processing Plant LLC is suspected of tax evasion. The plant did not pay taxes on exports of titanium raw materials to Russia and Belarus with the aim of manufacturing weapons and military goods, Venediktova said.
"We managed to seize the production site and other real estate of the plant, 16 vehicles. UAH14 million in the company's bank accounts, the company's corporate rights and two apartments of the suspect," she said.
The production complex, premises, warehouse, corporate rights and bank accounts of VSMPO Titan Ukraine LLC, a subsidiary of Russian titanium giant VSMPO-Avisma , have been seized in the city of Dnipro, Venediktova said.
"Among the assets seized in four months of war are also corporate rights worth UAH1.5 billion of the Nikolaev Alumina Refinery LLC [...]. Corporate rights worth UAH437.4 million of Aeroc LLC [...]. Also seized were the movable and immovable property of JSC Kirovogradskoye Rudoupravleniye," she said.
Venediktova also said that, at the request of the Prosecutor General's Office, a court has frozen the corporate rights of nine Ukrainian businesses owned by Russian companies Rostec, Tatneft , Rusal and HMS Group , along with 70 properties, including assets and land parcels, worth a total of more than UAH4.5 billion.
The assets of a number of Belarusian companies have also been seized based on the results of investigations, she said.
The official exchange rate on July 7 was UAH29.25/$1.