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| Vladimir P. Evtushenkov Is Accused of Laundering Money | Vladimir P. Evtushenkov Is Accused of Laundering Money |
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| MOSCOW — The house arrest of a billionaire sent shock waves through the Russian stock market on Wednesday in a case that for its sheer size, if nothing else, was already drawing comparisons to the jailing of the oil tycoon Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky. | MOSCOW — The house arrest of a billionaire sent shock waves through the Russian stock market on Wednesday in a case that for its sheer size, if nothing else, was already drawing comparisons to the jailing of the oil tycoon Mikhail B. Khodorkovsky. |
| Vladimir P. Yevtushenkov, the majority shareholder in the conglomerate Sistema, was accused of money laundering in connection with the company’s acquisition of shares in the oil producer Bashneft, Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement Tuesday night. | Vladimir P. Yevtushenkov, the majority shareholder in the conglomerate Sistema, was accused of money laundering in connection with the company’s acquisition of shares in the oil producer Bashneft, Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement Tuesday night. |
| Mr. Yevtushenkov, whose worth is estimated by Forbes Russia at $9 billion, is the richest man in Russia to face prosecution since Mr. Khodorkovsky, who was the owner of the Yukos oil company and the country’s wealthiest individual when he was arrested in 2003. Unlike Mr. Khodorkovsky, however, he has never dabbled in opposition politics, fueling speculation that business interests, possibly involving the Russian state oil company Rosneft, loomed behind Mr. Yevtushenkov’s recent legal troubles. | Mr. Yevtushenkov, whose worth is estimated by Forbes Russia at $9 billion, is the richest man in Russia to face prosecution since Mr. Khodorkovsky, who was the owner of the Yukos oil company and the country’s wealthiest individual when he was arrested in 2003. Unlike Mr. Khodorkovsky, however, he has never dabbled in opposition politics, fueling speculation that business interests, possibly involving the Russian state oil company Rosneft, loomed behind Mr. Yevtushenkov’s recent legal troubles. |
| “In Yukos, the most important motivation was to punish Khodorkovsky,” Sergei M. Guriev, an economist and former rector of the New Economic School in Moscow who fled Russia last year, said by telephone Wednesday. Mr. Guriev added: “Yevtushenkov has never been vocal or active in politics. And this is related to business apparently.” | “In Yukos, the most important motivation was to punish Khodorkovsky,” Sergei M. Guriev, an economist and former rector of the New Economic School in Moscow who fled Russia last year, said by telephone Wednesday. Mr. Guriev added: “Yevtushenkov has never been vocal or active in politics. And this is related to business apparently.” |
| The Kremlin denied on Tuesday that politics had played a role in the arrest and said that Mr. Yevtushenkov’s guilt or innocence would be established in court. | |
| “Any attempts to paint this story with political colors have no right to exist,” said Dmitri S. Peskov, the personal spokesman for President Vladimir V. Putin, the RIA Novosti news agency reported Tuesday. | “Any attempts to paint this story with political colors have no right to exist,” said Dmitri S. Peskov, the personal spokesman for President Vladimir V. Putin, the RIA Novosti news agency reported Tuesday. |
| A Rosneft spokesman also denied that the company had any connection with the arrest or had held talks with Bashneft, the oil company in which Mr. Yevtushenkov’s company holds a controlling stake. Sistema’s shares in Bashneft were frozen by a Moscow court in July in connection with an inquiry into the company that was opened earlier this year. | A Rosneft spokesman also denied that the company had any connection with the arrest or had held talks with Bashneft, the oil company in which Mr. Yevtushenkov’s company holds a controlling stake. Sistema’s shares in Bashneft were frozen by a Moscow court in July in connection with an inquiry into the company that was opened earlier this year. |
| “Sistema’s management believes that the acquisition of Bashneft group was legal and transparent,” the company said Wednesday in a statement. | “Sistema’s management believes that the acquisition of Bashneft group was legal and transparent,” the company said Wednesday in a statement. |
| More than a Khodorkovsky-like affair, the arrest of Mr. Yevtushenkov may fit a more familiar story line drawn from crony capitalism, in which an oligarch threatened by an investigation agrees to sell assets to a politically connected firm for a fraction of their value. | More than a Khodorkovsky-like affair, the arrest of Mr. Yevtushenkov may fit a more familiar story line drawn from crony capitalism, in which an oligarch threatened by an investigation agrees to sell assets to a politically connected firm for a fraction of their value. |
| “You give up your assets, the Russian government is happy that you leave, and you can stay free,” Mr. Guriev said. | “You give up your assets, the Russian government is happy that you leave, and you can stay free,” Mr. Guriev said. |
| The ties between politics and business have grown vastly during Mr. Putin’s 14 years in power, during which the state-run energy giants Gazprom and Rosneft have risen and some of Mr. Putin’s oldest allies, who control the state companies, have been enriched. | The ties between politics and business have grown vastly during Mr. Putin’s 14 years in power, during which the state-run energy giants Gazprom and Rosneft have risen and some of Mr. Putin’s oldest allies, who control the state companies, have been enriched. |
| In a 2012 interview with The New York Times, Mr. Yevtushenkov spoke about the tightrope powerful businessmen had to walk in Russia. | In a 2012 interview with The New York Times, Mr. Yevtushenkov spoke about the tightrope powerful businessmen had to walk in Russia. |
| “The size of your business should be matched by the size of your political influence,” Mr. Yevtushenkov said then. “If your political influence is smaller than your business, it will be taken away from you. If your political influence is bigger than your business, then you are a politician.” | “The size of your business should be matched by the size of your political influence,” Mr. Yevtushenkov said then. “If your political influence is smaller than your business, it will be taken away from you. If your political influence is bigger than your business, then you are a politician.” |
| The arrest of Mr. Yevtushenkov seemed certain to alarm foreign investors already nervous about the sanctions imposed by the West on the country’s largest banks and energy producers in response to Moscow’s role in the conflict in southeastern Ukraine. | The arrest of Mr. Yevtushenkov seemed certain to alarm foreign investors already nervous about the sanctions imposed by the West on the country’s largest banks and energy producers in response to Moscow’s role in the conflict in southeastern Ukraine. |
| Mr. Peskov allowed that markets may have an “emotional” reaction to the news of the arrest, but added, “that is not a reason for law enforcement not to be able to fulfill its necessary investigative actions.” | |
| Aleksandr Kornilov, an analyst on the oil and gas sector for Alfa Bank, said that the announcement was bound to scare some investors. “Property rights in Russia are already quite shaky, and the trial makes people worried,” he said. | Aleksandr Kornilov, an analyst on the oil and gas sector for Alfa Bank, said that the announcement was bound to scare some investors. “Property rights in Russia are already quite shaky, and the trial makes people worried,” he said. |
| Mr. Khodorkovsky, who spent 10 years in prison under Mr. Putin and now lives in Switzerland, told the RBK television channel that he believed Mr. Yevtushenkov was under attack from Igor Sechin, a longtime ally of Mr. Putin and the head of Rosneft. | Mr. Khodorkovsky, who spent 10 years in prison under Mr. Putin and now lives in Switzerland, told the RBK television channel that he believed Mr. Yevtushenkov was under attack from Igor Sechin, a longtime ally of Mr. Putin and the head of Rosneft. |
| The Russian business daily Kommersant, citing anonymous sources, said that Mr. Yevtushenkov had been unsuccessfully trying to meet with Mr. Putin since the middle of June. | The Russian business daily Kommersant, citing anonymous sources, said that Mr. Yevtushenkov had been unsuccessfully trying to meet with Mr. Putin since the middle of June. |
| “If Yevtushenkov can make a deal, then he should do it,” Mr. Khodorkovsky said. “If he has a chance to appeal to Putin, he should do so. Of course, it is better to agree with Putin because at least he won’t deceive, and these people will deceive.” | “If Yevtushenkov can make a deal, then he should do it,” Mr. Khodorkovsky said. “If he has a chance to appeal to Putin, he should do so. Of course, it is better to agree with Putin because at least he won’t deceive, and these people will deceive.” |