Press Release
8 July 2012 – Dmitry Klyuev, convicted in 2006 for a $1.6 billion attempted fraud, and lawyer Andrey Pavlov, who were shown to be central to $800 million of successive frauds against the Russian treasury uncovered by the late Sergei Magnitsky, both attended the OSCE parliamentary assembly in Monaco today in order to lobby against the Magnitsky sanctions. Their participation was facilitated by members of the official Russian delegation.
In order to gain access to the OSCE parliamentary assembly facilities, two members of the Russian delegation gave their badges and escorted Klyuev and Pavlov to the OSCE Convention Center at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco. The Russian officials helping Klyuev and Pavlov’s attendance at the OSCE assembly were Gleb Reshetnikov, secretary of the Russian delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (gleb@duma.gov.ru), and Ilya Kostunov, a deputy of the Russian Duma (http://www.duma.gov.ru/structure/deputies/131106/).
“It is remarkable that Russian officials would advocate for convicted felon and his partner shown to have stolen $800 million from Russian people and involved in crimes that Sergei Magnitsky discovered for the exposure of which he was killed,” said a Hermitage representative.
Russian Duma deputy Ilya Kostunov who assisted Klyuev and Pavlov in Monaco is a former activist of Nashi youth movement, which is an organisation involved in attacks on Russian opposition figures and foreign diplomats. Most recently, in June 2012, Ilya Kostunov initiated an attack on Alexei Navalny, a prominent Russian blogger, over his anti-corruption work.
The details of the serial $800 million thefts and role played by Klyuev, Pavlov and his associates were revealed last month in “The Magnitsky Files,” an 18-minute movie shown in Washington by U.S. Senator John McChain and Freedom House David Kramer, and which is now available on Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mL9b5LP4Ubc)/.) Over 280,000 Russians have watched it in the first week since its release. The movie shows a pattern of joint trips by Russian government officials, Klyuev and Pavlov to Dubai, United Kingdom, and Cyprus after various crimes were committed.
Summarising the links between Russian government officials, Klyuev and his associates, U.S. Senator John McCain called on President Obama to proscribe the Klyuev group as a “transnational criminal organisation” and introduce targeted economic sanctions.
“Public information, much of it uncovered by Mr. Magnitsky himself before his arrest in Russia in 2008, suggests that the Klyuev Group has colluded with senior Russian officials to engage in bribery, fraud, embezzlement, company thefts, and other serious financial crimes…Activities of the Klyuev Group appear to put the U.S. and international financial systems at serious risk of abuse,” said Senator McCain (http://www.scribd.com/doc/98337177/Untitled).
“I write to you today to request that you begin a process to determine whether to designate and impose sanctions, under the Executive Order 13581, against a dangerous transnational criminal organization known as the “Klyuev Group,” said Senator McCain in the letter.
Sergei Magnitsky, a 37-year old Russian lawyer who was investigating the money laundering by the KOCG, was falsely arrested, tortured and killed in police custody two and a half years ago. His killers have not been brought to justice in Russia.
The theatrics of swapping badges with the government officials for Klyuev and Pavlov to get access to the OSCE Parliamentary assembly was unnecessary. According to the communications director for OSCE PA Neil Simon:
“The annual session is open to the press and the public.”
For further information please contact:
Hermitage Capital
Phone: +44 207 440 17 77
E-mail: info@lawandorderinrussia.org
Website: http://lawandorderinrussia.org
Facebook: http://on.fb.me/hvIuVI
Twitter: @KatieFisher__
Livejournal: http://hermitagecap.livejournal.com/
Press Contact for OSCE PA:
Neil Simon
Director of Communications
OSCE Parliamentary Assembly
+45 60 10 83 80
neil@oscepa.dk
www.oscepa.org
