200 volumes of machinations. Money to the tune of 500 billion rubles remained on the account of “Apatit” less than one day and then was recalled at once. The website Prigovor.ru reminds its readers of what happened on November 25, 2003.
On this day 20 years ago, on November 25, 2003, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the former head of the Oil Company Yukos, in presence of his lawyers found out that the preparatory inquiry on the case of the machinations with the stocks of JSC “Apatit” was over, as well as the case of tax evasion. According to the law, Khodorkovsky and his defense were given 200 volumes of the criminal case – for getting acquainted with the materials of it.
“The criminal case pertaining to embezzlement and tax evasion of Yukos as well as entities under its control is unprecedented both with regard to the amount of the stolen means, tax arrears, and the extent of the investigative work. As of today, the sum of the damage inflicted on the state by the actions of Khodorkovsky and Lebedev, exceeds $1 billion”, pointed out the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, explaining the charges on which Khodorkovsky in October 2003 was taken in custody. At the same moment, “the king of the borehole transparency” was charged on seven Articles of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation:
- Article 159, paragraph 3 (fraud in large scale);
- Article 160, paragraph 1 (Misappropriation or Embezzlement);
- Article 165 (Infliction of Property Damage Through Deception or Abuse of Confidence);
- Article 198, paragraph 2 (Evasion by a Natural Person of Paying a Tax (or) a Fee… committed on an especially large scale);
- Article 199, paragraph 2 (Evading Paying of Taxes and (or) Fees Collectible from Organizations… by a group of persons by previous consert);
- Article 315 (Non-execution of a Court’s Judgement, Decision, or any Other Judicial Act);
- Article 327, paragraph 2 (Forgery, Manufacture, or Sale of Falsified Documents, Government Awards, Stamps, Seals, and Forms… committed for purpose of concealing another crime or facilitating its commitment).
(See also “The Formula of Khodorkovsky’s Indictment”,
“The formula of Platon Lebedev Indictment”,
“The Formula of Andrey Kraynov’s Indictment”)
Reporting that Mikhail Khodorkovsky is starting to get acquainted with the 200-volume case, the newspaper “Kommersant” in its piece entitled “A complete set of charges. Mikhail Khodorkovsky begins to get acquainted with the 200-volume case” quite intelligibly explained the essence of the machinations with the shares of JSC “Apatit”.
“I WILL SELL TO FIRMS IN ALL DIRECTIONS…”
According to the investigation, Mr. Lebedev tried to substantiate in arbitration that the affiliated with “Menatep” firm “Volna” that had bought a stock of shares of "Apatit”, had fulfilled its investment obligations with regards to this entity by transferring to it 500 billion rubles. In fact, this money resided on the account of “Apatit” less than a day and then at once was recalled by “Volna”, and to arbitration were presented payment documents of the transferring this means to “Apatit”. Then the 20-percent stock of shares was sold in all directions to the firms affiliated with “Menatep”, and at the moment, when, according to the ruling of the appeal body of the arbitration they should be returned to the state, it was impossible to do so”.
Apart from that, tax crimes were also mentioned in this case – both Yukos, as organization, and its billionaires deciding to rip off the budget as physical persons.
Following the results of all procedural acts on the first case of Khodorkovsky, Lebedev, and Kraynov, in this court’s ruling found its reflection 11 episodes of the criminal activity of the leadership of the “most transparent” oil company.
It’s interesting to note that the terms of the ending to the preliminary investigation, announced in November 2003, the proverbial “numerous analysts” started to call “emergent” as if they had forgotten that the proceedings around the shares of “Apatit" began, at least, in 2002, and the materials not only had been collected and analyzed but had been also presented to the viewing of the broad public. The voluminous document entitled “Background information on the criminal case No18/41-03” emerged in the press at the end of October 2003. And anyone could estimate the level of “transparency” of the company Yukos, as well the business style of the organized group of the “main shareholders”.
As a matter of fact, Khodorkovsky wanted to stretch the time in order to somehow “offload” the charges, as on some of the episodes expiring periods of limitation were visible. In the first place, it touched, in the first place, on the insolvent affair with the stocks of the JSC “Apatit”. Finally, on May 16, 2005, the Meschansky Court of Moscow took the decision to lift from Khodorkovsky, Lebedev, and Kraynov the episode pertaining to the machinations with the stocks of the JSC “Apatit” in connection with expiring the period of limitation (10 years).
The ruling held: “the Court finds it necessary to drop criminal charges of the case No 1-39/05 with regard to Khodorkovsky Mikhail Borisovich and Kraynov Andrey Vladimirovich pertaining to charges of the fraudulent acquiring the stocks of the JSC “Apatit” in connection with the expiring of the period of limitation, and not to institute criminal proceedings on this part of the charges”. The similar norm was also applied to Platon Lebedev – his criminal case No 1-33/05 on charges of the fraudulent acquisition of the stocks of the JSC “Apatit” was dropped. But “expiring of limitation periods” is not an exoneration.
Although the criminal episode of the fraud with the stocks of the JSC “Apatit” was dropped, it still has remained on the list of the criminal “exploits” of the swindlers, as the decision of the court was not based on exonerating circumstances. It has become a bright moment characterizing Yukos “main shareholders” and their “business” style. Not every businessman, though very insolent, is capable “with honest eyes” to bring to arbitration court (!) payment documents, “bearing evidence” of the money which were taken from the account of the receiver long ago. But such persons, as is known, were found in Yukos, and they brought the mentioned papers. And his element of the “arbitrage fraud”, entrenched in the business style of the “most transparent company”, apparently, until today manifests itself in various situations, including in courts”, notes the website Prigovor.ru.
(See the previous article “On this day, the Nevzlin’s gang tried to kill Yevgeny Rybin. “On November 24, 1998, Tsigelnik and Reshetnikov, having received information from Pichugin that Rybin in the evening would be at a party…” The website Prigovor.ru reminds its readers of what happened on November 24, 1998.
