Boris Berezovsky Arrested in London

A lot of strange things might happen in the world during the war in Iraq

It is amazing, how the world changes as soon as military actions start in a country that is rich with natural resources. A short time ago, Russian experts doubted that that Chechen terrorist Akhmed Zakayev would face the Russian trial. Zakayev’s sponsor, former Russian oligarch and political emigrant Boris Berezovsky, provided best British lawyers to him. British actress Vanessa Redgrave launched a campaign to extradite Zakayev. However, it became known today that Zakayev’s sponsor and patron, Boris Berezovsky, was put behind the bars.

As AP reported, the British police arrested Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky this morning in London. Berezovsky was arrested on the adequate inquiry from the Russian government. The Russian Office of the Prosecutor General accused Berezovsky of swindling.

On October 30th last year, a Moscow court issued a warrant to arrest Berezovsky, as well as his former partner, Badri Patakarsishvily (Georgian president’s advisor at the moment), and his companion, Yury Dubov. The arrest warrant was issued within the framework of the criminal case pertaining to the plundering at a Russian major car company AvtoVAZ. The investigation determined that there were 2033 cars stolen from the company.

As AP reported, after the arrest, both Berezovsky and Dubov were released on bail of 100 thousand pounds sterling. They are to face the British trial on April 2nd. There is a real opportunity that Boris Berezovsky will not be extradited and Russian investigators will have to fly over to London to question him.

Boris Berezovsky’s Russian lawyer, Andrey Borovkov, did not talk to his client, so he could not answer reporters’ questions. The lawyer did not even know, if Berezovsky was arrested or not. The lawyer told Russian reporters that he would continue trying to contact his client to discuss the situation.

Boris Berezovsky always rejected all charges that the Russian government brought down against him. As he said, the legal persecution against him was all conducted on account of political goals of the Russian government. Berezovsky stated that he was the last fighter for freedom and democracy in Russia, while President Putin wanted to retrieve Stalinism and an authoritarian state in the country. However, if Russian government’s claims to Mr. Berezovsky are of the political character, they do not touch upon any kind of dissident activity of the disgraced oligarch.

Investigators from the Russian Office of the Prosecutor General repeatedly said that they had certain questions to ask Berezovsky about his business in Chechnya, about his links with Chechen terrorists’ leaders. Even if Vladimir Putin dislikes Boris Berezovsky for some personal reasons of his own, this does not mean anything. PRAVDA.Ru will watch the development of events.

Akhtyam Akhtyrov PRAVDA.Ru

Translated by Dmitry Sudakov

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