Sergei Magnitsky

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The original press release can be found here.

Justice for Sergei Magnitsky: Moscow Court Set to Approve Arrest Warrant for William Browder After Death Threats to Coerce Main Government Witness to Testify

March 21, 2017

Moscow Court Set to Approve Arrest Warrant for William Browder After Death Threats to Coerce Main Government Witness to Testify

20 March 2017 – The Moscow City Court is expected to approve the repeat arrest warrant for William Browder and his colleague, Ivan Cherkasov on Tuesday, 22 March 2017.

There is currently a Russian arrest warrant in place for William Browder based on his 2013 Russian conviction in Russia. The new arrest warrant being requested by the Russian authorities is based on the same criminal case under which Mr Browder was previously convicted in absentia and his lawyer, Sergei Magnitsky, posthumously in 2013, involving Russian government tax claims against a Hermitage Fund subsidiary Dalnaya Step.

In order to justify the new arrest warrant, the Russian authorities have arrested Alexander Dolzhenko, a Russian insolvency practitioner. He was arrested in July 2015 and charged with colluding with Browder to falsely bankrupt Dalnaya Step. According to Mr Dolzhenko’s statement, he was taken to FSB headquarters in Stavropol and told:

“If you were a patriot of Russia, you would give evidence against the leaders of Dalnaya Step who had bought up Gazprom shares; it is necessary to take their foreign property.”

At the beginning of the interrogation, according to Dolzhenko, he was told: “Eight people had died in that case, the last one being Magnitsky, and … if I persist, that list would grow.”

Mr Dolzhenko initially testified against Browder, but the later retracted his testimony, stating that he “was forced to sign the interrogation report by blackmail,” and that he first heard the name of Browder from the investigator.

In November last year, in court hearings on the case against Dolzhenko held in Elista in southern Russia, he collapsed in court suffering a heart attack. He was taken to the hospital but the case carried on. When his lawyer protested during the proceedings, he was forced off the court room and a state lawyer was appointed to Dolzhenko.

It’s expected that Dolzhenko will be convicted later this month, with the final hearing in the case to take place on Tuesday, 22 March in Elista court.

His conviction is expected to be used by the Russian government to pursue Mr Browder in a new in absentia trial in Russia later this year and a new civil case in London which is ongoing.

“The arrest warrant decree does not correspond to the purpose of the criminal justice and demonstrates the denial of access to justice,” said Russian lawyer for William Browder and Ivan Cherkasov, Alexander Antipov.

For more information, please contact:

Justice for Sergei Magnitsky

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Justice for Sergei Magnitsky: UK Magnitsky Asset Freezing Legislation Passed the Second Reading in the House of Lords

March 21, 2017

UK Magnitsky Asset Freezing Legislation Passed the Second Reading in the House of Lords

16 March 2017 – The UK House of Lords approved in its second reading the Magnitsky asset freezing legislation, which will allow the British government to freeze the assets of human rights abusers. The bill is now slated for a line-by-line examination in the House of Lords on 28 March 2017.

“I welcome the fact that we have taken action, sending a clear statement that we will not allow human rights abusers to launder their criminal assets through the UK,” said Baroness Williams of Trafford, Minister of State at the Home Office, introducing the proposed Magnitsky legislation.

Under this new legislation, assets of those involved in gross human rights violations abroad will be subject to civil recovery by the British government. The initiative was inspired by the case of Sergei Magnitsky:

“We have amended the Bill … to allow for the civil recovery of any proceeds of gross human rights abuse overseas. This amendment was prompted by the horrific treatment of Sergei Magnitsky, a Russian tax lawyer. …Magnitsky’s treatment was truly shocking, and it is only one example of the many atrocious human rights violations committed globally every year,” said Baroness Williams of Trafford.

Baroness Stern said:

“The victims of grand corruption are too many to count… The Magnitsky amendment represents a huge step forward and I was very glad to hear the Minister talk about human rights abuses around the world in this connection. Some argue that grand corruption should be classified as a human rights abuse; I find that argument convincing.”

Lord Rooker said:

“I salute Mr Browder for his dedication and perseverance in trying to bring those guilty of the murder of his lawyer to justice… Chasing them legally around the world, and now in this Bill, is a must.”

Baroness Hamwee said:

“Corruption and the infringement of human rights go hand in hand. I welcome the Magnitsky amendment.”

In closing the debate, Baroness Williams of Trafford talked about the government ensuring that “the Magnitsky power will be used” in cases where there is evidence “to satisfy a court on the balance of probabilities that property in the UK is the proceeds of gross human rights abuses or violations overseas.”

The events of the Magnitsky case are described in the international best-seller “Red Notice” by William Browder and in a series of Magnitsky justice campaign videos on Youtubechannel “Russian Untouchables.”

For more information, please contact:

Justice for Sergei Magnitsky

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Justice for Sergei Magnitsky: Today the UK Parliament Passed Historic Magnitsky Asset Freezing Sanctions

February 23, 2017

21 February 2017 – Today the UK House of Commons unanimously passed the UK Magnitsky Sanctions legislation.

The Magnitsky Sanctions legislation was voted on as part of the UK Criminal Finances Bill. It will allow the British government to freeze assets of human rights abusers in the UK. The Magnitsky Sanctions amendment which passed was submitted by UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd.

“The new Magnitsky Sanctions Legislation is going to cause perceptible fear for kleptocrats in Russia and other authoritarian regimes. They all have expensive properties in London and think they are untouchable,” said William Browder, leader of the global Magnitsky Justice Campaign and author of “Red Notice: How I Became Putin’s No 1 Enemy.”

“This effort is the result of seven years of advocacy in the name of the late Sergei Magnitsky who uncovered and testified about the US$230 million corruption scheme perpetrated by Russian officials and was killed for his whistle-blowing,” said William Browder.

“Should the House of Lords pass this into law, the UK will be the second country in Europe to pass Magnitsky sanctions and will set a strong example for the rest of Europe,” said William Browder.

The new UK Magnitsky sanctions legislation introduces gross human rights abuse as part of the unlawful conduct, to which civil recovery powers can now be applied under Part 5 of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002.

The UK Magnitsky legislation protects those who “have sought to expose the illegal activity carried out by a public official or a person acting in an official capacity, or to obtain, exercise, defend or promote human rights and fundamental freedoms.” (full text here).

Sergei Magnitsky was a Russian lawyer who uncovered the massive corruption perpetrated systematically by Russian officials and organized criminals, which included thefts from the Russian treasury, including the theft of US$230 million in 2007. Instead of pursuing the officials who approved the thefts, the Russian government arrested Sergei Magnitsky and put him in pre-trial detention, where he was tortured for 358 days and killed at the age of 37. All officials implicated in his torture and the multi-million dollar thefts have been exonerated.

In response to the impunity demonstrated by the Magnitsky case in Russia, the US passed the Russia-focused Magnitsky Act enacting US asset freezes and visa bans in 2012 and the Global Magnitsky Act which applies to human rights violators around the world in 2016. Estonia passed its Global Magnitsky Act legislation in 2016. Currently, Canada and the EU are considering their own versions of Magnitsky sanctions as well.

“The new UK Magnitsky Legislation deals with asset freezing on human rights abusers. We will continue to campaign for visa sanctions on human rights abusers in the UK under separate legislation,” said Magnitsky campaign leader William Browder.

For more information, please contact:

Justice for Sergei Magnitsky