Russian businessman arrests in oligarchs investigation

• The 58-year-old man was being held on suspicion of perjury, fraud against the Home Office, and money laundering.
• More than 50 officers from its Combatting Kleptocracy Cell participated in the operation.
• Search resulted in the seizure of a number of digital devices and a sizeable sum of cash.

Officers looking into possible oligarch criminal activities have detained a Russian billionaire at his multi-million dollar London residence.

The 58-year-old man was being held on suspicion of perjury, fraud against the Home Office, and money laundering.

On suspicion of money laundering, a 35-year-old man was detained.

When he attempted to flee with a bag containing thousands of pounds in cash, he was also detained for impeding an officer.

The businessman’s current partner’s ex-boyfriend, a third man, 39, was detained at his residence in Pimlico, central London, on suspicion of money laundering and conspiracy to commit fraud.

The National Crime Agency (NCA) reported that more than 50 officers from its Combatting Kleptocracy Cell participated in the operation at the businessman’s residence, where a search resulted in the seizure of a number of digital devices and a sizeable sum of cash.

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He added: “We will continue to use all the powers and tactics available to us to disrupt this threat.”

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The NCA has not revealed the names of the three men who were detained but have all been freed on bail.

The NCA claimed that it was the most recent operation carried out as part of its initiatives to halt the operations of dishonest international corporate executives and the people who support them.

According to the NCA, almost 100 “disruptions”—actions that eliminate or lessen a criminal threat—have been taken against Putin-linked elites and their facilitators. These include account freezing orders (AFOs) against accounts held by individuals who are intimately associated with sanctioned Russians.

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