Apr 4, 2023
UK Drops Part of Probe Into Sanctioned Russian Billionaire Fridman
, Bloomberg News
(Bloomberg) -- The UK’s National Crime Agency has dropped part of its investigation into sanctioned Russian billionaire Mikhail Fridman after dramatically raiding his London home and arresting him late last year.
The NCA is no longer probing Fridman on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud the UK Home Office and conspiracy to commit perjury, people familiar with the decision said. A money laundering investigation is still ongoing and the legal basis for the raid’s search warrant is also being contested, the people said who asked not be identified because the matter is private.
In December, more than 50 officers descended on Fridman’s £65 million ($81.1 million) mansion in north London and arrested the 58 year-old businessmen, removing “digital devices and a significant quantity of cash,” the NCA said in a statement, which did not identify Fridman. A 35 year-old man was also arrested on suspicion of money laundering and obstruction after he was seen leaving the home with a bag containing “thousands of pounds in cash.” The NCA and Fridman declined to comment.
The decision to drop two of the three lines of inquiry into Fridman is a blow for the NCA’s Combatting Kleptocracy Cell, which publicized the raid in December across social media with a statement and a picture of officers inside the tycoon’s home. He was on a video call with business partners in Moscow at the time of the raid, a person familiar with the process said. Fridman’s arrest has been widely reported.
Fridman is one of Russia’s most prominent businessmen after making billions in banking, oil and retail. After he and his partners pocketed $14 billion from the sale of oil company TNK-BP to state-controlled Rosneft in 2013, he moved to the UK to set up a private equity firm investing in businesses around the world. The UK and the European Union slapped sanctions on Fridman and his partners soon after Russia invaded Ukraine, freezing his assets. He has remained in London, living under the restrictions. The US has not imposed sanctions on him.
The Financial Times identified Fridman and the status of the probe earlier.
The NCA arrested a third man at his home in West London for offenses including money laundering and conspiracy to commit fraud. All three were released on bail.
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