Bloomberg reported that Russian prosecutors filed a lawsuit against the 51-year-old tycoon in a court in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk on August 17.
Billionaire Melnichenko is the founder of Russia’s largest coal company SUEK JSK and fertilizer company EuroChem Group. According to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Mr. Melnichenko is currently worth $13 billion.
"The lawsuit targets Mr. Melnichenko, SUEK JSK and two other companies, but the Siberian court did not provide further details," Bloomberg wrote, adding that the lawsuit was published on the court's website.
SUEK JSK is headquartered in Russia, while EuroChem is registered in Switzerland while holding large assets in Russia.
Billionaire Melnichenko is being sued in Russia. Photo: Bloomberg
Billionaire Melnichenko was previously sanctioned by the European Union (EU) in March this year for "having close relations with President Vladimir Putin". About 3 months later, billionaire Melnichenko's wife, Ms. Aleksandra Melnichenko, was also sanctioned by the EU.
The US and Western countries have recently imposed a series of sanctions on Russian oligarchs, aiming to put pressure on Moscow after President Putin launched a special campaign targeting neighboring Ukraine in late February last year.
In that context, President Putin has called on Russian oligarchs to put patriotism above profits, increasing domestic investment to strengthen the economy in the face of Western sanctions.
President Putin calls on Russian billionaires abroad to repatriate their assets. Photo: RT
According to records published on the Siberian court website, the first hearing in the case against billionaire Melnichenko will take place on September 7. A spokesman for billionaire Melnichenko also said he had received notice of the court's request.
Bloomberg revealed that billionaire Melnichenko is now living in the United Arab Emirates after many years living in Europe.
While the court has not released details, Russian news site RBC revealed that Mr. Melnichenko's case concerns energy assets that companies linked to him bought from businesses linked to former minister Mikhail Abyzov in 2018.
Mikhail Abyzov was arrested and charged with embezzlement in 2019.
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