Russia's private equity firm Baring Vostok has appealed to President Vladimir Putin to intervene in a criminal investigation into its U.S. founder Michael Calvey and other executives.
"Recently, Russian courts and law enforcement have not sought pre-trial detention in bail hearings against suspects and defendants in business-related criminal cases. This approach to the law excludes the possibility that business partners can face pressure in corporate disputes. Despite the demands of the law, these citizens were sentenced to pre-trial detention by the court," Baring Vostok said in an open letter published on its website today.
Baring Vostok asked Putin "to take the criminal case under your personal control to ensure a full, independent, and objective investigation" against Calvey, three other Baring employees, and two other defendants.
Prosecutors accuse them of defrauding Vostochny Bank, a top 30 lender in which Baring Vostok has a majority stake, of 2.5bn rubles in a related-party transaction. Calvey denies the charges, which he says are a salvo in a struggle for control of the bank with Vostochny minority shareholders Artem Avetisyan and Sherzod Yusupov, the Financial Times reported.
