Russian law enforcement authorities have leveled new bribery allegations against billionaire Vadim Moshkovich just days before his pre-trial detention was scheduled to end, according to a report by the Kommersant business newspaper citing a Moscow court.
Moshkovich, who founded the agricultural conglomerate Rusagro, was taken into custody in late March over allegations of extensive fraud and misuse of his official position.
He, along with former Rusagro CEO Maxim Basov, is accused of failing to repay 47 billion rubles (approximately $582 million) in loans related to their acquisition of a controlling interest in Solnechny Produkti, a significant supplier of vegetable oils and fats in Russia, between 2018 and 2019.
Additionally, they are charged with causing a further 1 billion rubles (around $12.4 million) in financial losses through a series of transactions deemed “economically unjustifiable and unprofitable.” Investigators have identified 16 purported victims in this case, comprising independent creditors and local tax authorities.
The new bribery accusation, revealed on Tuesday at Moscow’s Meshchansky District Court, claims that Moshkovich bribed an unnamed official in return for undisclosed services.
The court has extended the pre-trial detention for both Moshkovich and Basov until August 25. If found guilty of fraud and abuse of power, they could face sentences of up to 10 years, while the new bribery charges could add as much as 15 years to their potential prison time.
Moshkovich, listed as the 55th richest individual in Russia with an estimated fortune of $2.7 billion, is the first billionaire noted by Forbes to be detained in Russia since the onset of the extensive invasion of Ukraine.
He established Rusagro in 2003, which has developed into one of the leading producers of sugar, meat, and vegetable oils in Russia.
In February 2022, Moshkovich was sanctioned by the EU after attending a meeting at the Kremlin with President Vladimir Putin and other business leaders on the day the invasion began. Subsequently, he resigned as chairman of Rusagro and decreased his ownership stake in the company to below 50%.
