Moscow — A court in Moscow ruled on Monday that Dmitry Mazurov, the former owner of Russia’s largest independent oil-processing plant, would be held in custody until September 12 pending trial on suspicion of embezzling 1.8 billion roubles ($28.75 million).
Mazurov, who used to own the debt-ridden Antipinsky refinery in western Siberia, was arrested on Saturday after flying into Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport from abroad, his company New Stream Group said.
Mazurov denied wrongdoing in a written statement on Monday. His defence said it would appeal the decision.
New Stream had owned the Antipinsky refinery, which filed for bankruptcy in May after a London court ordered its assets frozen following a lawsuit from a trading house.
Claims against the refinery as part of its bankruptcy case amount to more than 346.5 billion roubles ($5.5 billion).
Last month, SOCAR Energoresurs, a joint venture between Russia’s largest lender, Sberbank, and a group of investors, acquired an 80% stake in the refinery..
Sberbank is the refinery’s main creditor.
- Reuters
