Boris Berezovsky has lived in self-imposed exile in London since 2001.
Photo: Ilya Pitalev
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Berezovsky Trial Kicks Off in Moscow
Self-exiled Russian tycoon Boris Berezovsky is to go on trial in Moscow on Monday for suspected embezzling from the state-owned airline Aeroflot. The former oligarch, who is on the wanted list in Russia, has refused to attend. Mr. Berezovsky instructed his lawyers not to take part in the trial. However, the defense will turn up to Monday’s preliminary hearing.
Russian prosecutors earlier finished an investigation into the Berezovsky case, accusing him of embezzling 214 million rubles from Aeroflot. The businessman is also suspected of laundering Aeroflot’s 16 million rubles in cash.
Boris Berezovsky has lived in self-imposed exile in London since 2001. The Prosecutor General’s Office said new laws introduced in January allow suspects of top crimes to be convicted even if they do not appear in court.
Russia has long been seeking Mr. Berezovsky’s extradition from the UK, which British officials are intent on refusing. Moscow insists that it wants to take the tycoon to court on purely financial charges.
Apart from the Aeroflot case, Boris Berezovsky is also accused of fraud with AvtoVAZ cars and an illegal purchase of a land plot in a resort area outside Moscow. Prosecutors have also opened two cases against him for an alleged call to “seize power in Russia by force.”
www.kommersant.com
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