Topline
The Justice Department unsealed an indictment Thursday accusing Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska and three associates with violating U.S. sanctions imposed against the aluminum tycoon in 2018, including by devising a scheme for the mother of his child to give birth in the United States so the baby could be an American citizen.
Oleg Deripaska speaks at a press conference in Moscow in June.
Key Facts
Prosecutors charged Russian national Natalia Bardakova and U.S. citizen Olga Shriki with allegedly facilitating millions of dollars of transactions on Deripaska’s behalf, including a $3 million sale of a California music studio in 2019, a flower purchase for a Canadian Parliament member and Easter gifts for an American television host.
Bardakova and Shriki also purportedly helped Deripaska’s pregnant girlfriend Ekaterina Voronina obtain a 10-day tourism visa to the U.S., only to stay in the country for six months and give birth in 2020, with prosecutors citing the couple’s alleged desire for their child to receive U.S. citizenship and benefit from the American healthcare system.
Authorities stopped another attempt by the group earlier this year for Voronina to give birth to the couple’s second child in the U.S., according to prosecutors.
Deripaska was charged with violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and faces up to 20 years in prison if he’s convicted.
Deripaska is at large, Justice Department spokesperson Nicholas Biase confirmed to Forbes, and Deripaska could not immediately be reached for comment.
Shriki, who was arrested Thursday, allegedly facilitated $300,000 of payments related to the birthing scheme and also faces charges for allegedly destroying electronic records, and Voronina was charged with lying to Department of Homeland Security Agents upon her entry to the U.S.
Key Background
Deripaska was first sanctioned in 2018, four years after Russia’s widely condemned annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, with the Treasury Department citing his close ties to the Russian government and alleged links to organized crime. Deripaska is one of the few Russian oligarchs to criticize Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, calling the war a “colossal mistake” in June. His outspokenness did not gain any sympathy from American prosecutors: Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement, “The indictment unsealed today signals the United States’ ongoing support for the people of Ukraine in the face of continued Russian belligerence.” He’s the latest Russian tycoon to face charges in the U.S. since the Ukraine invasion began.
Forbes Valuation
We estimate Deripaska to be worth $2.8 billion, thanks to his stakes in Russian commodity and energy companies and his expansive real estate portfolio. His holdings include a five-story home in New York’s Upper East Side bought for $42.5 million in 2008 and a 12,000-square-foot mansion in Washington, D.C., bought for $15 million in 2006.
Further Reading
‘A Colossal Mistake’: Russian Billionaire Deripaska Doubles Down On Ukraine War Criticism (Forbes)
Russian Billionaire Vs. The U.S. Government: A Look At Oleg Deripaska’s Puzzling Lawsuit (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/dereksaul/2022/09/29/doj-charges-russian-billionaire-deripaska-with-violating-sanctions-and-scheming-for-his-child-to-be-born-in-us/