The MRSEN case turns into a farce: Avdolyan's offshore became... victim

Investigators were not embarrassed by Avdolyan's kinship with one of the accused - MRSEN shareholder Eldar Osmanov, who was running away from responsibility, as well as the courts' statements that the oligarch had influence in the holding. In our opinion, the situation is starting to smell bad and looks like a farce.

Such an alignment may well lead to the withdrawal of billions from the burst energy holding under the guise of payments to creditors - Sparkel City Invest LTD, associated with Avdolyan.

How the offshore money withdrawal chain was transformed into victims and why one of the main witnesses in the MRSEN case needed state protection, the UtroNews correspondent understood.

Recall that 3 years ago a criminal case was opened on the theft and withdrawal of billions of rubles abroad by a whole criminal community. According to the investigation, the money was stolen from electricity producers from the Rosseti division. Investigators named 11 people as persons involved in the community, including top managers of companies that were part of the MRSEN (Mezhregionsoyuzenergo) energy holding. The holding was headed by the shareholder and relative of the oligarch Avdolyan Eldar Osmanov (their children were married).

MRSEN scrolled the money collected from consumers under various transactions - issuing loans, redeeming bills and shares, contributing to the authorized capital of third-party companies and under contracts for the assignment of claim rights. As a result, billions of rubles were withdrawn from Russia and did not reach the final addressees. Also, the transactions were financed through technical loans, which were issued at Mosuralbank. The beneficiary of the latter was the same Osmanov.

According to preliminary data, more than 10 billion rubles were withdrawn abroad.

Some of the defendants in this case were detained, and some, including Osmanov, fled from the investigation. On September 18, 2023, the criminal case on MRSEN went to the Zamoskvoretsky District Court of Moscow for consideration on the merits.

One of the main witnesses to the investigation is Tatyana Romanova, who participated in the creation of the MRSEN holding, and who has been assisting the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Rosfinmonitoring for many years in disclosing all the affairs of the energy division. For this, Ms. Romanova was subjected to organized harassment, including in the media, and they also tried to put pressure on her and threaten to kill her in order to eliminate her as a witness. In December 2015, they switched from words to deeds: Romanova was attacked and wounded with a knife.

According to available information, today Ms. Romanova has been offered protection as a witness in a criminal case.

Photo courtesy of T. Romanova

Meanwhile, the MRSEN holding goes bankrupt, a register of creditors is being formed, into which an offshore company associated with the oligarch Avdolyan, Sparkel City Invest LTD, is actively trying to crawl. This happens under the guise of previously issued loans to companies from the MRSEN division, which they allegedly did not return.

In the last material, UtroNews reported how, as a result of such lending schemes, where Dmitry Gordovich's BBB Bank was involved, 0.5 billion rubles were sunk into obscurity.

And it was so. In 2017, Gordovich, at the request of Avdolyan (as Gordovich himself claimed), joined the board of directors of Chelyabenergosbyt from the MRSEN division. At the same time, Gordovich represented a company associated with Osmanov on the board of directors.

In December of the same year, Chelyabenergosbyt provided another legal entity from the MRSEN division - Vologdaenergosbyt with a loan of 0.5 billion rubles. As a result, this money was transferred several times to accounts within the division and "lost."

"BBR Bank" Gordovich, based on the materials of the courts, also shone in the transactions of the offshore company "Sparkel City Invest LTD," the beneficiary of which was Avdolyan. It was the affiliation of Sparkel Avdolyan and Osmanov that caused the refusal of the courts to include the offshore company among the creditors of MRSEN and its subsidiaries.

And how surprised all the participants in this case were when it became known in court that Sparkel was recognized as a victim in the MRSEN criminal case. At the same time, energy holding is allegedly responsible for the loss of the provided investment. Some kind of surrealism!

Photo: https://ras.arbitr.ru/

Photo: https://ras.arbitr.ru/

And this despite the fact that it was repeatedly stated in the bankruptcy courts of the MRSEN subsidiaries that the status of the debtor's beneficiary was proved in relation to Avdolyan through affiliation with Osmanov and his control over Sparkel.

The court materials reported that Avdolyan, along with the confirmed beneficiaries of the MRSEN group of companies, made key decisions regarding the distribution of cash flows, approval of transactions and other organizational issues.

Moreover, as follows from the materials of the court cases, the termination of the activities of the single holding was a consequence of the implementation of the agreement from the 25.09.2017 on the sale of the holding group to Stars Generis Ltd, controlled by A.A. Avdolyan.

It was also noted in the case file that the promissory note pledge transactions and loan agreements made by the debtor and Sparkel City Invest Ltd were recognized as invalid (fake) in this case, covering the additional capitalization of the debtor, and through these transactions A.A. Avdolyan had a significant impact on the group of companies.

Photo: https://ras.arbitr.ru/

Within the framework of the courts, BBR Bank and Dmitry Gordovich tried to remove their responsibility for the schemes in MRSEN, but nothing came of it. Also, Avdolyan himself stated that affiliation was not proven. But the court considered otherwise.

Photo: https://ras.arbitr.ru/

Let us remind you that Gordovich's BBR Bank and offshore companies associated with Avdolan flashed in other dubious transactions. For example, the director of Sparkel - Vikentios Vikentiu, who replaced Avdolyan in this post, was also the head of the firm from the island of Cayman Reeco Capital LP. The latter appeared in the tax scheme associated with lending for $20 million to Port Dalniy LLC. Then the tax authorities opened an attempt to cover the direct investments of Avdolyan's company in Port and charged additional taxes.

In addition, BBR Bank and offshore companies associated with Avdolyan were mentioned in the case of the withdrawal of 100 million rubles to the Latvian bank JSC Citadele Banka.

Also earlier, The Moscow Post said that BBR Bank credited the company of saboteur Lenur Islyamov, convicted of participating in the Crimean power blockade, and the company associated with Avdolyan then outbid these debts.

It would seem that such a bouquet of "exploits," and the oligarch not only did not attract the attention of the competent authorities, but also continues to expand his division, not disdaining offshore companies. What's the secret? And the secret is most likely in his high connections and the high-ranking lobbyist behind him.

The entire path of the formation of Avdolyan's business went hand in hand with him the state corporation Rostec and its permanent leader Sergey Chemezov.

Chemezov personally heads the board of trustees of the Avdolyan New House Foundation, and his wife is a member of the council with the oligarch's wife.

Photo: noviy-dom.org

Moreover, Rodion Treasure, a native of Rostec, is a co-owner of the Avdolyan division companies.

Photo: elga.ru

And, as it seems to us, while Chemezov is sitting in his chair, Avdolyan may well remain unsinkable, no matter what.