Russia

Criminal Indictment alleging tax evasion involving an unidentified "major gas and energy company" in Russia and companies or accounts in Belize, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, and Switzerland in USA v. Mark Gyetvay, described as an accountant and a citizen of the United States residing in Florida and Russia, at the U. S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

Application by Terra Invest LLC to take discovery from Vladislav Doronin "for use in foreign civil and criminal proceedings pending and under investigation in Russia" involving "a fraudulent scheme that forced Terra Invest out of a lucrative residential real estate project located in Moscow", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

Application by VUZ-Bank JSC, of Russia, to take discovery from Agropex International Inc. and Hakan Holdings Limited for use in "reasonably contemplated criminal proceedings in Dubai, United Arab Emirates" regarding "a fraud perpetrated on VUZ Bank by a number of parties, including, but not limited to, Rus-AgroExport LLC, Hakan Holdings Limited, and Hakan Agro DMCC", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia.

Application by VUZ-Bank JSC, described as "a commercial bank in Russia and 100% subsidiary of Ural Bank for Reconstruction and Development CB PJSC, to take discovery from Ashley Anderson Bahceci for use in "reasonably contemplated criminal proceedings in Dubai, United Arab Emirates" regarding "a fraud perpetrated on VUZ Bank by a number of parties, including, but not limited to, Rus-AgroExport LLC, Hakan Holdings Limited, and Hakan Agro DMCC", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

Fixed Date Claim Form regarding Kentville Group Inc. in Mikhail Zakharov, of Moscow, Russia v. The Registrar of Corporate Affairs at the British Virgin Islands High Court.

Notice of Motion to Quash IRS Summonses issued to JPMorgan Chase Bank, Santander NA, and TD Bank regarding "the Russian Income Tax Liabilities of JSC Topprom" in Alma Trade LLC v. USA at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Originating Application in MaplesFS Limited v. B&B Protector Services Limited, of the Cayman Islands; PJSC National Bank Trust, of Russia, and PJSC Bank Otkritie Financial Corporation, of Russia, at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.

Application by Uralsib Bank PJSC, of Russia, to take discovery from Citibank, N.A., The Bank of New York Mellon, Société Générale, New York Branch; HSBC Bank USA, N.A., BNP Paribas USA, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Barclays Bank Plc, Deutsche Bank Trust Co. Americas, The Bank of Nova Scotia, New York Agency; UBS AG, Bank of America, N.A., Standard Chartered Bank US, Commerzbank AG, New York Branch, The Clearing House Payments Company, LLC, Paypal, Inc., and MoneyGram Payment Systems, Inc. for use in legal proceedings in Russia "to recover a debt" of $4.3 million allegedly owed by Denis Smyslov, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Application by Makhpal Karibzhanova, described as "a citizen of Kazakhstan and is the former wife of a wealthy and politically-connected Kazakh businessman, Aidan Karibzhanov" whose "wealth is held in offshore structures and through nominee ownership around the world, making it necessary to gather evidence from a number of countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, and Singapore, as well as Kazakhstan and a number of offshore jurisdictions", including the British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Hong Kong, and Singapore, to take discovery from Mubadala Fund, Extell Developrnent, Edward Mermelstein, One and Only Realty, Eduard Ogai, Credit Suisse, American Express and others for use in legal proceedings in Kazakhstan, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Complaint alleging fraud in U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Mikhail Kokorich, described as a citizen of Russia residing in Switzerland who "since 2018 has faced repeated adverse determinations from U.S. government agencies for national security reasons", at the U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Administrative Order by the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission imposing penalties of $8 million on Momentus Inc., Stable Road Acquisition Corp., SRC-NI Holdings LLC, and Brian Kabot for alleged securities fraud involving, inter alia, Mikhail Kokorich, described as "a Russian citizen residing in Switzerland".

Chapter 15 Petition for Recognition of a Foreign Main Proceeding in Russia by Evgeniy Nikolaevich Ratnikov, as the Foreign Representative of Vitaly Ivanovich Smagin, described as a Russian debtor who, inter alia, "recently took actions in the country of Liechtenstein aimed at concealing his assets", filed at the U. S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California.

Application by Terra Invest LLC to take discovery from OKO Group, LLC and Sberbank CIB USA Inc. for use in "civil and criminal proceedings pending and under investigation in Russia" involving "a fraud perpetrated on Terra Invest by its business partners in Russia", who were identified as Mikhail Cherkasov and Andrei Dolin, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Petition for Court Supervision of a Voluntary Liquidation by Margot MacInniss and John Henry, of Grant Thornton, in the matter of Eridamis II  (in Voluntary Liquidation), described as "a holding company for a yacht" whose shares are held by Emil Pirumov and whose "liabilities exceed its assets by approximately €5.6 million", at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.

Application by Roman Vladimirovich Spiridonov to take discovery from JPMorgan Chase Bank and Citibank N.A. for use in "a pending Russian Bankruptcy Proceeding concerning Igor Vladislavovich Soglaev", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Criminal Indictment alleging money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business known as "Bitcoin Fog" in USA v. Roman Sterlingov, a citizen of Russia residing in Sweden, at that U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Criminal Information alleging investment fraud and money laundering in USA v. Denis Sotnikov, described as a citizen of Russia residing in Florida, USA, at the U. S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Plea Agreement regarding allegations of investment fraud and money laundering in USA v. Denis Sotnikov, a citizen of Russia residing in the United States, at the U. S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Chapter 11 Petition by Kumtor Gold Company CJSC and Kumtor Operating Company CSJC, both of the Kyrgyz Republic and owned by Centerra Gold Inc., of Toronto, Canada, at the U. S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. Creditors include companies in Belarus, Belgium, Canada, China, England, Finland, Gibraltar, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Netherlands, Russia, Scotland, and Switzerland.

Complaint alleging a cannabis-based investment fraud in Wilhelmus Johannes van Opzeeland, a citizen of the Netherlands residing in Singapore; Qi Guan, a citizen of China residing in England, and Mindaugas Montvilas, a citizen and resident of Lithuania v. Cannafornia Holdings Inc. and Paul King at the U. S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

Defendant's Notice of Removal, including a copy of the complaint alleging a "brazen attempt by an investment manager, GVA Capital, to steal the substantial gains of its investor" amounting to "hundreds of millions of dollars" in Definition Services Inc., of the British Virgin Islands v. GVA Capital Ltd., described as a Cayman Islands company based in San Francisco, California, USA, at the U. S. District Court for the District of Delaware.

Public Notice by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission that "executive Board Members" Konstantin Yasnov, Vladimir Zalogin, and Ekaterina Zalogina have paid €100,000 to settle a regulatory investigation into Prior Capital Cy Ltd.

Application by Makhpal Karibzhanova, who "is a citizen of Kazakhstan and is the former wife of a wealthy and politically-connected Kazakh businessman, Aidan Karibzhanov", for an order of judicial assistance "to obtain testimony and documentary evidence to assist in discovery for use in prospective Kazakhstan civil proceedings" involving her former husband, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Uzbek-Russian-Belgian businessman Patokh Chodiev intends to sue British financial data and information provider Refinitiv Limited, formerly known as Reuters Limited, over "a poorly supported and damaging report" about him in its risk and compliance database known as World-Check.

Application by Patokh Chodiev, described as a "successful international businessperson and philanthropist" and director of "Eurasian Resources Group" with a residence in London who is "originally from Uzbekistan" but also a citizen of Russia and Belgium, to take discovery from Refinitiv US LLC and Thomson Reuters Holdings Inc. for use in "contemplated English court proceedings" against Refinitiv Limited "arising from its publication in its commercial product, the World-Check Risk Intelligence Service database, of a poorly supported and damaging report on Mr. Chodiev that has harmed and continues to harm him", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Criminal Complaint alleging money laundering and unlicensed money transmission involving a "darknet money laundering service" called "Bitcoin Fog" in USA v. Roman Sterlingov, described as a citizen of Russia and Sweden, at the U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

Judgment for hundreds of millions of dollars in favor of a "wife" who "has been the victim of a series of schemes designed to put every penny of the Husband's wealth beyond her reach" involving individuals, companies, and structures in Bermuda, Cyprus, Dubai, England, France, Isle of Man, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Panama, Russia, and Switzerland in Tatiana Akhmedova v. Farkhad Teimur Ogly Akhmedov, a citizen of Russia; Woodblade Limited, of Cyprus; Cotor Investment SA, of Panama; Qubo 1 Establishment, of Liechtenstein; Qubo 2 Establishment, of Liechtenstein; Straight Establishment, of Liechtenstein; Avenger Assets Corporation, of Panama; Counselor Trust Reg, of Liechtenstein, as Trustee of certain Trusts; Sobaldo Establishment, of Liechtenstein, as Trustee of certain Trusts; Temur Akhmedov, described as "a British citizen who lives in London", and Borderedge Limited, of Cyprus, at the High Court of Justice, for England and Wales.

Writ of Summons in Pavel Cherkashin, who appears to be based in San Francisco, California, USA, individually and on behalf of GVA Capital Ltd. v. GVA Capital Ltd., of the Cayman Islands, and Odrison Investments Limited, described as a Cyprus company "controlled by ... Magomed Musaev, a Russian national domiciled in the Russian Federation", at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.

Claim Form in Andrey Titarenko v. Appleby (BVI) Limited, Terence Wyndham Wong, Andrew Willins, Laure-Astrid Wigglesworth, and Fraser Mitchell at the British Virgin Islands High Court.

Criminal Complaint alleging investment fraud and money laundering in USA v. Denis Sotnikov, described as a citizen of Russia residing in the United States, at the U. S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Fixed Date Claim Form regarding Jeneva Finance Corp. in Valery Remizov, of Russia v. The Registrar of Corporate Affairs at the British Virgin Islands High Court.

Public Warning by the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority that Sutev AG is suspected of "conducting unauthorised activities in the financial market". Editor's Note: Research by OffshoreAlert in the Swiss Commercial Registry showed that the sole director of Sutev AG is Diego Andre Tanner, of Zurich, Switzerland, while a former director is Alexey Babkin, a citizen of Russia.

Ex Parte Application by Nikolay Anatolyevich Falin, described as "a Russian businessperson and the owner of the Maximum Group, a group of Russian companies engaged in the transportation of oversized and industrial cargo", to take discovery from Magnus Gylfi Thorstenn, described as a lawyer in New York, for use in legal proceedings in the British Virgin Islands involving allegations of fraud, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Complaint "to undo the fraudulent conveyances" in PJSC National Bank Trust, of Russia v. Natalia Pirogova, of Russia; NMP-Group LLC, Madison 33 Owner LLC, Luiza Dubrovsky, 172 Madison NP Holding LLC, 172 Madison NP Member LLC, Madison 33 Partners LLC, FGP 1 LLC, Serhii Yefimtsev, M Investment Capital LLC, Mark Shvartsburd, and Alexander Forkosh at the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.

Judgment for $43 million in VTB Bank PJSC, of Russia v. Mikhail Aleksandrovich Babel, a.k.a. Michael Babel, described as a citizen of Russia, at the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of Kings.

Class Action Complaint alleging fraud in Nicholas Petruzzi v. Qiwi Plc, described as a Cyprus company that "purports to operate electronic online payment systems primarily in Russia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Belarus, Romania, the United Arab Emirates, and internationally" in Boris Kim, Sergey Solonin, Alexander Karavaev, and Varvara Kiseleva at the U. S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Public Notice by the Mauritius Financial Services Commission that it has disqualified Aleksei Korotaev, a citizen of Russia, who was described as "the director and ultimate beneficial owner" of Private Kapital Partners Asset Management (Mauritius) Limited, for regulatory breaches.

Fixed Date Claim Form regarding GV Global Ltd. in Ravil Sayfulin, of Russia v. The Registrar of Corporate Affairs at the British Virgin Islands High Court.

Petition for Restoration and Winding Up in State Development Corporation, described as a Russian "state corporation" v. Nutcracker Holdings Limited,  whose "sole shareholder" was Andrey Konchalovsky, a.k.a. Andrey Mikhalkov, and which allegedly owes $127 million regarding the financing of "The Nutcracker" movie that, inter alia, involved an entity in the British Virgin Islands that "may have been owned and/or controlled by Mr. Konchalovsky", at the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands.

Involuntary Chapter 7 Petition by alleged creditors with claims totaling $9.4 million in Rasel Ltd., of Beverly Hills, CA; Consul Group RE 2021, S.R.L., of Costa Rica; NEEW TNG, formerly known as RSW Investment Group, Ltd., of the British Virgin Islands; SWIG America Consulting LLC, of Lanham, MD; Arteam Consult, Ltd., of Lanham, MD; Genius of Wealth, LLC, of London, England, and SWIG International Ltd., of London, England v. Michael I. Gauss, a.k.a. Mikhail Gauss, a.k.a. Michael I. Syroejine, a.k.a. Mikhail Gass, a.k.a. Michael Ivan Syroejine, a.k.a. Mikhail Syrojeschin, a.k.a. Mikhail Syroetine, a.k.a. Michael Fuss, a.k.a. Michael Guss, a.k.a. Mikhail Syroejin, a.k.a. Michael Syrojeschin, of Santa Barbara, CA, at the U. S. Bankruptcy Petition for the Central District of California.

Class Action Complaint alleging fraud in Dale H. Ochakoff v. Qiwi Plc, described as a Cyprus company that "purports to operate electronic online payment systems primarily in the Russia, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Belarus, Romania, the United Arab Emirates, and internationally"; Boris Kim, Sergey Solonin, Alexander Karavaev, and Varvara Kiseleva at the . S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Application by Lake Holding & Finance S.A., described as a British Virgin Islands company beneficially owned by Vladimir Vasilyevich Melnichenko, of Russia, to take discovery from UBS AG, Societe Generale/SG Private Bank, Banque Lombard Odier & Cie AG, a.k.a. Lombard Odier Darier Hentsch & Cie; CIM Banque SA, Kookmin Bank (Korea), Credit Suisse, PJSC Sberbank, Bank of America N.A., Citibank, N.A., Merrill Lynch Capital Corporation, Union Bancaire Privee CBI-TDB, Geneva, and BSI SA, Lugano for use in legal proceedings in Cyprus, France, Monaco, Russia, and Switzerland regarding alleged fraud, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Application by JSC BTA Bank, of Kazakhstan, to take discovery from Wells Fargo Bank, NA, Wells Fargo & Company, Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC, Wells Fargo Financial Advisors Network LLC, and related entities; Yvgeny Bukrinsky, d.b.a. Omega Enterprises, described as an "accountant/tax preparer"; "certain business entities owned or operated by Elvira Kudryashova, namely, Anthill Shopnplay (a/k/a Anthill Fashion Market, Anthill Shopnplay LLC, and Kud Vintage) and Edward Hill Bakery party N beyond"; Granite Escrow and Settlement Services, Escrow of the West, Jason Bradshaw, d.b.a. Bradshaw Residential Group, described as a "real estate agent", and Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC for use in legal proceedings in the United Kingdom and "a pending criminal investigation in Kazakhstan", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Application by Torgovy Dom KAToil OOO, described as a Russian company that is "a wholly owned subsidiary of C.A.T. oil AG, a publicly-traded Austrian company", to take discovery from Citibank, N.A., JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., Bank of New York Mellon, N.A., Bank of America, N.A., Wells Fargo Bank N.A., and The Clearing House Payments Company L.L.C. for use in "contemplated legal proceedings" in Russia against Victoria Sokolova for suspected fraud, filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Claim Form for $1.3 million in Forbes Hare v. Multiple Investments Ltd., of Belize; Eduard Vasiliev, Mikhail Cherniy, and AFK Sistema PAO, of Russia, at the British Virgin Islands High Court.

Summons With Notice regarding "fraudulent conveyances of assets by or for the benefit of defendant Natalia Pirogova" in PJSC National Bank Trust v. Natalia Pirogova, of Russia; NMP-Group LLC, Madison 33 Owner LLC, Luiza Dubrovsky, 172 Madison NP Holding LLC, 172 Madison NP Member LLC, Madison 33 Partners LLC, FGP 1 LLC, Serhii Yefimtsev, M Investment Capital LLC, Mark Shvartsburd, and Alexander Forkosh at the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York.

Application by State Corporation Deposit Insurance Agency, of Russia, on behalf of JSC International Bank of St. Petersburg, to take discovery from The Bank of New York Mellon and Citibank N.A. "for use in forthcoming fraud proceedings in a Russian court against Sergei Bazhanov, Alexander Zuev, and Hervet Investments Limited", filed at the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Public Notice by the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission that it has imposed a fine of €46,000 on FinTailor Investments Ltd. for regulatory breaches. Editor's Note: Research by OffshoreAlert showed that, in corporate filings on July 21st and October 29th, 2020, respectively, FinTailor Investments Limited identified its sole shareholder as Alkis Aloneftis, of Cyprus, and its directors as Alkis Aloneftis, Constantinos Hadjimiltis, also of Cyprus, and Dmitry Blokhin, a citizen of Russia, while the company's website at www.fintailor.com identified its "Board of Directors" as Kirill Lyushinskiy, "Managing Director"; Natalia Sorokina, "Independent Non-Executive Director", and Constantinos Hadjimiltis, "Independent Non-Executive Director".