Ex-Russian Billionaire Faces Serious Charges, Life Sentence Sought
The Armenian-born businessman renounced his Russian citizenship after moving to the Nagorno-Karabakh region in 2022, a long-contested territory between Azerbaijan and Armenia. He later served in the administration of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. Following Baku’s military takeover of the region in 2023, Vardanyan was detained while attempting to leave the area.
During a Thursday hearing before a military tribunal in Baku, prosecutors reiterated allegations that Vardanyan, while acting as state minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, also called Artsakh, was responsible for crimes including crimes against humanity, war crimes, terrorism, and financing of terrorism. The prosecution urged the court to impose a life sentence. Vardanyan’s trial commenced in January.
Earlier on Thursday, Vardanyan, through a statement issued by his family, denounced the proceedings as an “imitation of justice” and declared: “Arstakh was, is, and will be.”
Vardanyan, 57, built his wealth in the 1990s as a co-founder of the investment firm Troika Dialogue. In 2011, the company was sold to Russia’s largest bank, Sber, in a deal worth $1.4 billion.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the
information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept
any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images,
videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information
contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright
issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
Legal Disclaimer:
EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above.
