// Press Releases (in English)
Bill Browder to Give Damning Testimony On the Criminality of the Putin Regime to UK Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee
November 8, 2016
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate distribution
Bill Browder to Give Damning Testimony On the Criminality of the Putin Regime to UK Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee
8 November 2016 – Bill Browder, author of the best-selling book, “Red Notice: How I Became Putin’s Number One Enemy,” and leader of the global Magnitsky Justice campaign, will testify in the British parliament today, 8 November 2016, at 3:45 pm.
The hearing entitled “Critics of the Kremlin give evidence” is part of an inquiry on the UK’s relations with Russia and is organized by the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Commons.
Mr Browder will speak about his personal experience of dealing with Russian authorities, who have declared him a threat to national security; his campaign’s recent discoveries connecting illicit funds stolen from the Russian people directly to President Putin’s cronies; the role of Western enablers in attempting to protect Russia’s kleptocrats in the UK, and the implications for UK-Russia policy.
Mr Browder will talk about the fate of his young Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, who uncovered the theft of US$230 million from the Russian treasury by a criminal enterprise involving Russian officials, and who was killed in Russian police custody at the age of 37.
After Magnitsky’s death, Russian authorities posthumously accused him of the crime he had uncovered and exonerated all officials.
The Global Magnitsky Justice campaign has uncovered illicit funds connected to the US$230 million laundered in multiple jurisdictions, including the UK, and a number of proceedings around the world have been initiated as a result.
The Global Magnitsky Justice campaign also calls for targeted visa and financial sanctions on those connected to Sergei Magnitsky’s death and the crime he had uncovered. A law imposing such sanctions was introduced in the USA in 2012. A similar legislation has been initiated in the UK.
The testimony by Mr Browder on UK-Russia relations will take place at Boothroyd Room, Portcullis House, and will start at 3.45pm on Tuesday, 8 November 2016.
Mr Browder will be preceded by Russian dissident Mikhail Khodorkovsky who will also give evidence to the committee.
For more information, please contact:
Justice for Sergei Magnitsky
e-mail: info@lawandorderinrussia.org
Announcement of the hearing on UK-Russia relations at the Commons Select Committee:
US$14 Million Connected to Proceeds of US$230 Million Fraud Uncovered by Magnitsky Have Been Traced to Canada
October 27, 2016
US$14 Million Connected to Proceeds of US$230 Million Fraud Uncovered by Magnitsky Have Been Traced to Canada
27 October 2016 – US$14 Million of suspected illicit proceeds connected to the US$230 million Russian fraud uncovered by Hermitage’s murdered Russian lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, have been traced to Canada.
In a complaint filed with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and eleven other law enforcement agencies this week, Hermitage’s lawyer, Lincoln Caylor of Bennett Jones LLP, outlined US$220,000 in proceeds which were transferred to Canada from two Cyprus accounts. These two Cyprus accounts are connected to the leader of the Klyuev Organized Crime Group, Dmitry Klyuev, who is sanctioned under the US Magnitsky Act for his involvement in the Magnitsky case. These transactions can be traced back to the $230 million tax rebate fraud uncovered by Sergei Magnitsky in 2008.
An additional $1.5 million was wired to Canada through a number of different accounts which can also be traced back to the fraud uncovered by Sergei Magnitsky, and a further US$12.6 million in suspicious money transfers were wired from Canada back to the money laundering network used by the Russian fraudsters.
“Based on the present information, it is clear that Canada has a role to play in investigating the crime uncovered by Sergei Magnitsky,” said Bill Browder, leader of the global Magnitsky justice campaign.
The news comes amidst the debate in the Canadian parliament on the implementation of Magnitsky sanctions legislation in Canada, similar to that adopted by the US. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Cooperation and Security in Europe, of which Canada is a member, also urged member states to adopt these sanctions in a 2012 Magnitsky resolution.
In 2008, Hermitage’s lawyer Sergei Magnitsky uncovered the US$230 million fraud and testified about the complicity of Russian officials in the fraud. He was falsely arrested by the Russian Interior Ministry, detained for 358 days without trial, tortured and killed in Russian police custody at the age of 37.
After Magnitsky’s death, Russian authorities posthumously accused him of the crime he had uncovered and exonerated all officials. Hermitage’s global justice campaign has identified numerous beneficiaries around the world who received funds laundered from the crime uncovered by Sergei Magnitsky.
Investigations into the laundering of proceeds of the US$230 million fraud have been opened in multiple countries, including the USA, France, and Switzerland.
The events of this case are described in the New-York Times best-seller, “Red Notice” by William Browder, and in a series of campaign videos which can be seen on the YouTube channel, “Russian Untouchables.”
For more information, please contact:
Justice for Sergei Magnitsky
e-mail: info@lawandorderinrussia.org
US Appeals Court Sets a Precedent Punishing Baker Hostetler Lawyers for Switching Sides from Crime Victims to Perpetrators in the Magnitsky Case
October 17, 2016
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate distribution
US Appeals Court Sets a Precedent Punishing Baker Hostetler Lawyers for Switching Sides from Crime Victims to Perpetrators in the Magnitsky Case
17 October 2016 – In a precedent-setting decision, today the US Court of Appeals has disqualified US lawyers – Baker Hostetler and its partner John Moscow – from representing alleged Russian money launderers in the Magnitsky case.
“This case presents the “extraordinary circumstances” necessary to grant a writ of mandamus. …we …instruct the district court to enter an order disqualifying John Moscow and Baker Hostetler,” said the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in the ruling issued today.
“The issue involved is significant and will aid in the administration of justice,” said the US Courts of Appeals.
“This case implicates a significant and novel question of law regarding the rights of non-party clients,” said the US Court of Appeals.
The US Court of Appeals said in its decision:
“The court has recognized that crime witnesses, as well as witnesses, possess legitimate interests in criminal proceedings that may support disqualification… For these purposes, we see no reason why a non-party victim is not entitled to the same solicitude as a non-party witness.”
Prevezon, a Cyprus company owned by the son of senior Russian official, is alleged by the US Department of Justice to have laundered proceeds from the US$230 million fraud against Hermitage, uncovered by Hermitage’s lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.
In 2008, Hermitage hired Baker Hostetler and John Moscow to investigate the US$230 million fraud and bring its perpetrators and beneficiaries to justice through pursuing prosecutions and asset freezes by the US Department of Justice. Hermitage also sought Baker Hostetler’s help in seeking Magnitsky’s release from the Russian police custody.
In 2013, in a spectacular breach of duty to the former client, Baker Hostetler switched sides and started to act for Prevezon, an alleged beneficiary of the US$230 million fraud in the lawsuit in New York brought by the US Department of Justice, and began attacking Hermitage, its former client, as part of Prevezon’s strategy.
Following a review of the court record, the US Court of Appeals has now instructed the district court to disqualify John Moscow and Baker Hostetler for breaching its duty of loyalty and confidentiality to their former client, Hermitage, the victim of the Russian $230 million fraud.
Reciting previous US court rulings, the US Court of Appeals reaffirmed that “the preservation of the confidences between lawyer and client “touches upon vital concerns of the legal profession and the public’s interest in the scrupulous administration of justice.”
The US Court of Appeals has also upheld the rights of crime victims in seeing that their lawyers do not switch sides to represent crime perpetrators:
“The petition here also implicates the government’s ability to procure assistance from crime victims. If crime victims fear that the attorneys they hire may turn against them, they may be less likely to assist government in its investigations.”
In 2008, Hermitage’s lawyer Sergei Magnitsky uncovered the US$230 million fraud and testified about the complicity of Russian officials in it. He was falsely arrested by the Russian Interior Ministry, detained for 358 days without trial, tortured and killed in Russian police custody at the age of 37. After his death, Russian authorities posthumously accused Sergei Magnitsky of the crime he had uncovered and exonerated all officials. Hermitage’s global justice campaign has resulted in identifying beneficiaries of funds laundered from the crime Sergei Magnitsky uncovered and a number of proceedings around the world. Prevezon is subject to money laundering proceedings opened in the USA and Switzerland.
The events of this case are described in the New-York Times best-seller “Red Notice” by William Browder and in a series of campaign videos on Youtube channel “Russian Untouchables.”
For more information, please contact:
Justice for Sergei Magnitsky
e-mail: info@lawandorderinrussia.org
September 5, 2016
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate distribution
UK Judge Sentences ex Russian Police Officer in Magnitsky Case to 3 Months in Prison for Contempt of Court
5 September 2016 – A UK High Court Judge, the Honourable Mr Justice Phillips has sentenced ex Russian police officer Pavel Karpov to three months in prison for contempt of court.
The British court found Pavel Karpov, a 39-year old ex Russian Interior Ministry officer, in contempt of court for failing to appear before the court to answer questions and provide information about his assets in a £660,000 ($877,800) judgment against him for costs ordered by the court in his failed libel action against Hermitage Capital Management, Bill Browder and Jamison Firestone in relation to the Magnitsky case.
Justice Phillips concluded Karpov “has been guilty of contempt of court by disobeying the order of Master Eastman” and Karpov should be “committed to Her Majesty’s Prison for a period of 3 months.”
“Pavel Karpov was one of the main figures in the fraud that Sergei Magnitsky uncovered. We are committed to continue seeking justice through all legal means,” said William Browder, CEO of Hermitage Capital Management and leader of the global Magnitsky justice movement.
The UK contempt of court case against Pavel Karpov stems from Karpov’s non-payment of costs of a UK libel action that Karpov himself had initiated four years ago in the UK High Court.
Pavel Karpov’s 2012 UK libel suit was a landmark case of foreign libel tourism. One year after it was filed, in October 2013, the UK High Court threw it out as abuse of court process and/or jurisdiction. The UK High Court ordered Pavel Karpov to pay Hermitage Capital Management over £850,000 ($1,130,500) in costs for the libel proceedings. Over £660,000 ($877,800) of that amount remains unpaid by Pavel Karpov.
In July 2016, Hermitage Capital Management sought the court’s assistance to recover the debt from Pavel Karpov. Karpov failed to appear in court and, after several notices, the court found him in contempt.
The Honourable Mr Justice Phillips suspended the Committal Order to the 1st December 2016. If Karpov fails to appear before the Court on 1 December 2016 then an arrest warrant will be issued for him .
Former Russian police officer Pavel Karpov had an annual salary of less than £10,000, yet was able to hire a top UK law firm, Olswang, to represent him in his failed libel action.
On 12 April 2013, the US Treasury added Pavel Karpov to the financial sanctions list under the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012 for his role in the Magnitsky case.
On 2 April 2014, the European Parliament included Pavel Karpov on its list of individuals to be sanctioned based on their role in the Magnitsky case.
Sergei Magnitsky was Hermitage’s lawyer who uncovered the US$230 million fraud and testified about the complicity of Russian officials in it. He was falsely arrested, detained for 358 days without trial, tortured and killed in Russian police custody at the age of 37.
The events of this case emblematic of corruption and human rights abuse in Putin’s Russia are described in the New-York Times best-seller “Red Notice” by William Browder and in a series of campaign videos on Youtube channel “Russian Untouchables.”
For more information, please contact:
Justice for Sergei Magnitsky
+44 207 440 1777
e-mail: info@lawandorderinrussia.org
twitter.com/Billbrowder
Magnitsky’s Widow Asks Swiss Jewellery Company Chopard to Disassociate Itself From Moscow Film Festival That Plans to Screen Anti-Magnitsky Propaganda Film
June 22, 2016
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate distribution
Magnitsky’s Widow Asks Swiss Jewellery Company Chopard to Disassociate Itself From Moscow Film Festival That Plans to Screen Anti-Magnitsky Propaganda Film
21 June 2016 – The widow of Sergei Magnitsky, the Russian lawyer killed in Russian police custody in 2009, has written to Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, CEO of Chopard, a super luxury Swiss watch and jewellery company, asking for Chopard to reconsider its sponsorship of the Moscow Film Festival which recently added Andrei Nekrasov’s anti-Magnitsky propaganda film to its program on 23-30 June 2016.
“I urge you to not associate your fine brand and reputation of your company with the people who killed my husband and benefited from the serious corruption he had uncovered, and to publicly disassociate with the film festival unless its organizers remove this film from the program. This film has been thoroughly discredited and described as propaganda,” said Sergei Magnitsky‘s widow in her letter to Chopard.
No reply from Chopard has been received.
The anti-Magnitsky film by Russian filmmaker Andrei Nekrasov has been endorsed by senior Russian Government officials, including Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian General Prosecutor Yuri Chaika. The film has been promoted by perpetrators and beneficiaries of the US$230 million fraud that Sergei Magnitsky exposed. These include: Pavel Karpov, the former Russian Interior Ministry officer who had custody of the documents used in the crime; Andrei Pavlov, lawyer for the Russian criminal group who took part in sham court proceedings as part of the fraud; and Denis Katsyv, son of a Russian government official, whose assets have been seized in the US and Switzerland for suspicion of laundering the proceeds of the US$230 million fraud.
“It is surprising that Chopard would associate itself with this sordid spectacle. They should withdraw their funding for this effort. It’s one thing for compromised Russians to posthumously defame a Russian hero who gave his life for his principles. It’s entirely another when this is done relying on sponsorship funds from a reputable Western company like Chopard,” said William Browder, leader of the global Magnitsky Justice movement.
The anti-Magnitsky film by Andrei Nekrasov is one in a series of Russian propaganda and intimidation efforts seeking to fight Magnitsky sanctions and to avoid accountability for the torture and murder of Magnitsky and for the US$230 million theft he had uncovered. Prior to this, there has been a series of four propaganda films produced and aired on Russian federal TV stations in which Browder is portrayed as a CIA agent working to destroy Russia. Other methods have included opening new criminal cases against William Browder, as well as Russian anti-corruption blogger Alexei Navalny who has been vocally supporting justice for Sergei Magnitsky.
For more information, please contact:
Justice for Sergei Magnitsky
+44 207 440 1777
e-mail: info@lawandorderinrussia.org
twitter.com/Billbrowder
For more information please visit