Denis Katsyv

Last updated

Denis Katsyv is a Ukrainian, [1] Russian and Israeli [2] businessman based in Moscow and owner of Prevezon Holdings Limited. He was linked in a civil forfeiture case to money laundering through real estate investments in the United States, in violation of the Magnitsky Act of 2012; the case was settled in 2017 with the United States Justice Department by Prevezon agreeing to pay $5.9 million.

Contents

The Parties agree that the Complaints do not allege that any of the Defendants, Claimants, or Denis Katsyv, Alexander Litvak, or Timofey Krit, is responsible, directly or indirectly, for the arrest, detention, or death of Sergei Magnitsky, or that they have acted as an agent of, on behalf of or in agreement with a person in a matter relating to the arrest, detention, or death of Sergei Magnitsky. [3] [ non-primary source needed ]

Katsyv was represented by attorney Natalia Veselnitskaya, [lower-alpha 1] who met with Fusion GPS co-founder Glenn R. Simpson who was investigating American-British financier Bill Browder for Katsyv, [5] as well as with Donald Trump Jr. in the summer of 2016, during the U.S. presidential campaign of the latter's father, Donald Trump.

Background

Katsyv is the son of Pyotr Dmitriyevich Katsyv, who was the Minister of Transport for the Moscow region from 2000 to 2012, [lower-alpha 2] head of the main department for the Moscow region under Andrei Vorobyov from 2012 to 2013, and vice president of Russian Railways from October 2014 to February 2019. [9] [10] [11] He was educated and took advantage of business opportunities as Russia began to privatize.

Early in the 2000s, Denis Katsyv participated in a scheme that, according to Israeli authorities in 2005, was a money laundering scheme involving millions of dollars among three companies, Follet, Hanway and Bastet, and the Israeli Bank Hapoalim. [4] Martash Investments Ltd., which is a British Virgin Islands company owned by Alexander Litvak and Denis Katsyv and has bank accounts at UBS Bank in Switzerland and at Bank Hapoalim branch 535 in Israel, was a defendant in a money laundering case that paid 35 million to have the matter resolved. [4] [12] [13] [lower-alpha 3]

On August 12, 2012, Novaya Gazeta , Barron's , and the International Center for the Study of Corruption and Organized Crime (OCCRP) published articles detailing that Denis Katsyv had become the sole shareholder of Cyprus-based Prevezon Holdings Ltd. shortly after it received mysterious cash payments to its Swiss UBS bank accounts over two weeks in February 2008 from the two Moldovan companies Bunicon Impex and Elenast using the Alfa Bank hosted correspondent account for the Russian Bank Krainiy Sever. [12] [15] [16] [lower-alpha 4] Over $52 million was moved through Bunicon-Impex SRL and Elenast-Com SRL bank accounts throughout the 2008 winter with over $850,000 transferred to Prevezon Holdings' Swiss accounts on February 8 and 13, 2008. [12] At that time, Katsyv's business partner Litvak was an owner of the Prevezon Cyprus properties in New York and had interests with Prevezon Berlin GmbH in Germany. [12] During 2008, Prevezon and its business partner Africa Israel Investments (AFI), owned by Lev Leviev conducted several joint ventures in the United States and Europe. [17] [18] [19] [20] Some of the financing for Prevezon and its partner came from Deutsche Bank. [21] In 2013, Bill Browder insisted that Prevezon had received over $1.9 million through his stolen Hermitage Capital Management companies to purchase New York properties. [22] During 2013, Preet Bharara, prosecuting attorney for the Southern District of New York, seized four luxury apartments, two commercial properties and froze the assets of eleven firms including Prevezon Ltd.

In May 2017, Prezevon, represented by Louis Freeh, settled a case brought by the U.S Department of Justice for $5.9 million in fines. [1] [23] [24] [lower-alpha 5] It was related to Russian tax fraud and money laundering originally uncovered by the late Russian lawyer and auditor Sergei Magnitsky. Katsyv was represented by attorney Natalia Veselnitskaya [28] [23] and the law firm BakerHostetler in cooperation with research firm Fusion GPS, which was concurrently assembling opposition research against candidate Trump. [5] In November 2017, Katsyv's company Prevezon stated that it would pay the fine using money from AFI Europe, which is a subsidiary of Lev Leviev's Africa Israel Investments. [24]

He provided financial support to the Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative, a lobbying agent against the Magnitsky Act that was co-founded by Nataliya Veselnitskaya in February 2015 in Delaware. [29] [30] [31] Denis Katsyv was specifically named in testimony [32] by American-British financier Bill Browder to the United States Senate Judiciary Committee of the 115th Congress on July 27, 2017, in regards to the Magnitsky Act. Under the Magnitsky Act [lower-alpha 6] after the Magnitsky list was published in April 2013.[ clarification needed ] [33] [34] According to Alexei Navalny, the apartments, which were purchased by Prevezon Holdings in December 2009, were in the 20 Pine Street building, which is not far from Wall Street in the New York City Financial District, and is the same building that contains several apartments which were purchased within 3 weeks of the Prevezon Holdings purchases and had as beneficial owner Alexander Udodov, whose wife is the sister of Mikhail Mishustin. [35] [36] [37] [38] [39] [40] [lower-alpha 7] [lower-alpha 8]

See also

Notes

  1. Nataliya Vesilnitskaya became an attorney in 2009. In 2012, Vesilnitskaya's then husband Alexander Mitusov was a deputy prosecutor for the Moscow Region and later became an assistant to Katsyv's father Petr Katsyv while Petr headed the main department for the Moscow Region. [4]
  2. During this period, Grigory Luchansky, who founded the Vienna, Austria, based firm Nordex (Russian: «Нордекс») and was the beneficial owner of the firm ZiL until 2012 when the Andrey Molchanov's LSR Group obtained the site and allegedly Donald Trump would build his Trump Tower Moscow on property that Molchanov beneficially owns "that could work for the tower", [6] [7] [8] provided large amounts of funding for the Moscow transport complex.
  3. During 2004–05, employees, managers, and customers of the Bank Hapoalim branch 535 were investigated by Yoav Lehman of the Supervisor of Banks  [ he ] in the Bank of Israel, the Israel Anti Money Laundering Authority  [ he ], and Brigadier General Amichai Shai  [ he ] of the National Serious and International Crimes Unit of the Investigations Division  [ he ]. [14]
  4. During the scheme, the Krainiy Sever account with Alfa Bank served as a currency converter to transition from the Russian accounts to the overseas accounts. [12]
  5. Prevezon's attorney Louis Freeh was Director of the FBI from September 1, 1993, until June 25, 2001. [1] [24] [25] In May 2018, Freeh purchased a $9.38 million home from Armen A. Manoogian in Palm Beach, Florida, near Mar-a-Lago where Freeh often attends events. [26] [27]
  6. On December 12, 2012, the Magnitsky Act became United States law. [32]
  7. Alexander Udodov relinquished control of his apartments in the 20 Pine Street building in 2018 and divorced from Mikhail Mishustin's sister Natalya Stenina on December 18, 2020. [38] [39]
  8. Mishustin was the head of Russia's tax service from April 6, 2010, until January 16, 2020, when he became Russia's prime minister. [38]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sberbank</span> Russian bank

PJSC Sberbank is a Russian majority state-owned banking and financial services company headquartered in Moscow. It was called Sberbank of Russia until 2015. Sberbank has operations in several European nations, primarily post-Soviet countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bank Hapoalim</span> Israeli bank

Bank Hapoalim is one of the largest banks in Israel, established in 1921. The bank offers a broad range of financial services to retail, corporate, and institutional customers, with a focus on retail banking services. It operates a network of more than 250 branches and offices in Israel and abroad. Bank Hapoalim is a prominent player in the Israeli banking sector, with a significant market share.

<i>Novaya Gazeta</i> Russian independent newspaper

Novaya Gazeta, now Novaya Gazeta Europe, is an independent formerly Russian newspaper--published in Riga, Latvia, since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is known for its critical and investigative coverage of Russian political and social affairs, the horrors of the Chechen war, corruption among the ruling elite, and increasing authoritarianism in Russia. It was formerly published in Moscow until shortly after the war began, in regions within Russia, and in some foreign countries. The print edition is published on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays; English-language articles on the website are published on a weekly basis in the form of the Russia, Explained newsletter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmond Safra</span> Lebanese-Brazilian banker (1932–1999)

Edmond J. Safra was a Lebanese-Brazilian of Syrian Jewish descent banker and philanthropist who continued the family tradition of banking in Brazil and Switzerland. He was married to Lily Watkins from 1976 until his death. He died in a fire that attracted wide media interest, and was judicially determined to be due to arson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bill Browder</span> American-born British businessman and political activist (born 1964)

William Felix Browder is an American-born British financier and political activist. He is the CEO and co-founder of Hermitage Capital Management, the investment advisor to the Hermitage Fund, which at a time was the largest foreign portfolio investor in Russia. The Hermitage Fund was founded in partnership with Republic National Bank, with $25 million in seed capital. The fund, and associated accounts, eventually grew to $4.5 billion of assets under management. In 1997, the Hermitage Fund was the best-performing fund in the world, up by 238%. Browder's primary investment strategy was shareholder rights activism. Browder took on large Russian companies such as Gazprom, Surgutneftegaz, Unified Energy Systems, and Sidanco. In retaliation, on 13 November 2005, Browder was refused entry to Russia, deported to the UK, and declared a threat to Russian national security.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hermitage Capital Management</span> Investment fund and asset management company

Hermitage Capital Management is an investment fund and asset management company specializing in Russian markets founded by Bill Browder and Edmond Safra. Chief operating officer is Ivan Cherkasov. Hermitage Capital Management headquarters are in Guernsey; it also maintains offices in the Cayman Islands, London and Moscow.

Kushner Companies LLC is an American real estate developer in the New York City metropolitan area. The company's biggest presence is in the New Jersey residential market.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sergei Magnitsky</span> Russian tax advisor (1972–2009)

Sergei Leonidovich Magnitsky was a Russian tax advisor responsible for exposing corruption and misconduct by Russian government officials while representing client Hermitage Capital Management. His arrest in 2008 and subsequent death after eleven months in police custody generated international attention and triggered both official and unofficial inquiries into allegations of fraud, theft and human rights violations in Russia. His posthumous trial was the first in the Russian Federation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnitsky Act</span> 2012 United States federal law

The Magnitsky Act, formally known as the Russia and Moldova Jackson–Vanik Repeal and Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act of 2012, is a bipartisan bill passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Barack Obama in December 2012, intending to punish Russian officials responsible for the death of Russian tax lawyer Sergei Magnitsky in a Moscow prison in 2009 and also to grant permanent normal trade relations status to Russia.

Jamison Reed Firestone is an American attorney. Firestone graduated from Tulane University in 1988 and Tulane Law School in 1991. In August 1991, shortly before the fall of the Soviet Union, he moved to Moscow, Russia and co-founded the law firm Firestone Duncan. He fled Russia in August 2009 following the arrest of his employee Sergei Magnitsky, who died in prison, after eleven months' incarceration without trial.

AFI Europe is a real estate development and investment company operating in several main cities in Central and Eastern Europe. AFI Europe predominantly focuses on the development of large scale residential and commercial projects, and is part of the AFI Group, an international holdings and investments conglomerate.

Fusion GPS is a commercial research and strategic intelligence firm based in Washington, D.C. The company conducts open-source investigations and provides research and strategic advice for businesses, law firms and investors, as well as for political inquiries, such as opposition research. The "GPS" initialism is derived from "Global research, Political analysis, Strategic insight".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Natalia Veselnitskaya</span> Russian lawyer (born 1975)

Natalia Vladimirovna Veselnitskaya is a Russian lawyer. Her clients include Pyotr Katsyv, an official in the state-owned Russian Railways, and his son Denis Katsyv, whom she defended against a money laundering charge in New York. On 8 January 2019, Veselnitskaya was indicted in the United States with obstruction of justice charges for allegedly having attempted to thwart the Justice Department investigation into the money laundering charges against Katsyv.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trump Tower meeting</span> 2016 meeting with Donald Trump campaign officials

A meeting took place at Trump Tower in New York City on June 9, 2016, between three senior members of the 2016 Trump campaign – Donald Trump Jr., Jared Kushner, and Paul Manafort – four other U.S. citizens, and Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya. The meeting was arranged by publicist and long-time Trump acquaintance Rob Goldstone on behalf of his client, Russian singer-songwriter Emin Agalarov. The meeting was first disclosed to U.S. government officials in April 2017, when Kushner filed a revised version of his security clearance form.

Rinat Rafkatovitch Akhmetshin is a Russian-American lobbyist and a former Soviet counterintelligence officer. Bill Browder alleges that Akhmetshin represents Russian intelligence interests. He came to American media spotlight in July 2017 as a registered lobbyist for an organization run by Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya, who, along with him, had a meeting with Donald Trump's election campaign officials in June 2016.

Irakly "Ike" Kaveladze is a Georgian-American business executive. He is senior vice president at Crocus Group, the real estate development company run by Aras Agalarov. He was one of eight people attending a meeting with Donald Trump's election campaign officials in June 2016. According to his attorney, Kavaladze is a long-time U.S. citizen and has "never had any engagement with the Russian government in any capacity."

The Human Rights Accountability Global Initiative Foundation (HRAGI) is a Washington, D.C.-based lobby group, nominally focused on restoring American adoption of Russian children. It is being investigated as part of the 2017 Special Counsel investigation. It is reportedly defunct.

<i>The Magnitsky Act – Behind the Scenes</i> 2016 film by Andrei Nekrasov

The Magnitsky Act – Behind the Scenes is a 2016 film directed by Andrei Nekrasov, concerning the 2009 death in a Moscow prison cell, after 11 months in police custody, of 37-year-old Russian tax accountant Sergei Magnitsky. In 2007, Magnitsky was hired by American-born British financier Bill Browder to investigate the government's seizure of three of Browder's Russian subsidiaries. Discovering evidence of embezzlement, Magnitsky implicated two senior police officers in a tax rebate scam that used shell corporations plundered from Browder's holdings to defraud the Russian treasury of $230 million. Subordinates of those officials then arrested Magnitsky and charged him with the very crime he had exposed.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mikhail Mishustin</span> Prime Minister of the Russian Federation since 2020

Mikhail Vladimirovich Mishustin is a Russian politician and economist serving as the prime minister of Russia since 16 January 2020. He previously served as the director of the Federal Taxation Service from 2010 to 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnitsky legislation</span> Sanctions against foreign individuals

Magnitsky legislation refers to laws providing for governmental sanctions against foreign individuals who have committed human rights abuses or been involved in significant corruption. They originated with the United States which passed the first Magnitsky legislation in 2012, following the torture and death of Sergei Magnitsky in Russia in 2009. Since then, a number of countries have passed similar legislation such as Canada, the United Kingdom and the European Union.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Unger 2018, p. 218.
  2. Shalev, Chemi (May 26, 2018). "The Countless Israeli Connections to Mueller's Probe of Trump and Russia". Haaretz . Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  3. "Prevezon Settlement". Scribd. May 15, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 Еленина, Лариса (Yelenina, Larisa) (August 13, 2018). Кацывские "дети лейтенанта Шмидта" [Katsyvsky "children of lieutenant Schmidt"]. The Moscow Post (in Russian). Retrieved January 18, 2020.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. 1 2 Flegenheimer, Matt (January 8, 2018). "Fusion GPS Founder Hauled From the Shadows for the Russia Election Investigation". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  6. Alexander, Dan; Behar, Richard (May 23, 2019). "The Truth Behind Trump Tower Moscow: How Trump Risked Everything For A (Relatively) Tiny Deal". Forbes . Archived from the original on February 22, 2022. Retrieved November 9, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. Alexander, Dan; Behar, Richard (May 23, 2019). "Trump Tower Moscow: TowerGate Relationships". Forbes . Archived from the original on November 10, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  8. Ляув, Бэла (Love, Bela) (November 5, 2019). "Как за 20 лет жилищное строительство прошло путь от хаоса до тотального контроля: Российская экономика 1999–2019 гг. Спецпроект «Ведомостей» и «Эксперт РА»" [How in 20 years housing construction went from chaos to total control: Russian economy 1999–2019 Special project of Vedomosti and Expert RA]. [[Vedomosti|]] (in Russian). Archived from the original on November 10, 2023. Retrieved November 9, 2023.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. "Following the Magnitsky money". Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) . August 12, 2012. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  10. "Кацыв Петр" [Katsyv Pyotr]. Rucompromat (in Russian). Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  11. Orlyansky, Ruslan (April 15, 2019). Петр Кацыв "заплатит" за Подмосковье? [Pyotr Katsyv will "pay" for the suburbs?]. The Moscow Post (in Russian). Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 "The Wall Street Connection". Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project . May 26, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  13. Hagler, Edna Kaplan (June 27, 2005). "State of Israel vs. Martash Investment Holding Ltd" (PDF). District Court of Tel Aviv-Jaffa. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  14. "Investigation of Money Laundering in Bank Hapoalim Branch 535 and The Bank Hapoalim Trust Company". Port2Port. March 7, 2005. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  15. Anin, Roman (August 12, 2012). Бенефициары: Журналисты всего мира объединились в поисках денег, похищенных из российского бюджета в рамках "дела Магнитского". И часть мы уже нашли [Beneficiaries: Journalists from around the world came together in search of money stolen from the Russian budget as part of the Magnitsky case. And part we already found]. Novaya Gazeta (in Russian). Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  16. "Tracking the Money image". Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) . August 22, 2012. Archived from the original on November 9, 2012. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
  17. Sheil, Martin J. (February 1, 2018). "Deutsche Bank: A Global Bank for Oligarchs – American & Russian, Part 3: Jared Kushner and the 'King of Diamonds'". Who.What.Why. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  18. Green, David B. (July 25, 2017). "Who Is Lev Leviev, the Israeli Billionaire With Ties to Jared Kushner and Putin". Haaretz . Archived from the original on January 24, 2018. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  19. Dent, Wendy; Pilkington, Ed; Walker, Shaun (July 24, 2017). "Jared Kushner sealed real estate deal with oligarch's firm cited in money-laundering case". The Guardian . Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  20. "Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements". Africa Israel Investments . December 31, 2010. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  21. Protess, Ben; Silver-Greenberg, Jessica; Drucker, Jesse (July 19, 2017). "Big German Bank, Key to Trump's Finances, Faces New Scrutiny". The New York Times . Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  22. Komisar, Lucy (October 20, 2017). "The Man Behind the Magnitsky Act: Did Bill Browder's Tax Troubles in Russia Color Push for Sanctions?". 100 Reporters . Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  23. 1 2 U.S. Attorney's Office: Southern District of New York (May 12, 2017). "Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces $5.9 Million Settlement Of Civil Money Laundering And Forfeiture Claims Against Real Estate Corporations Alleged To Have Laundered Proceeds Of Russian Tax Fraud". Department of Justice. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  24. 1 2 3 Bertrand, Natasha (November 16, 2017). "Former FBI director represented Russian firm at center of major money-laundering probe". Business Insider . Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  25. "Louis J. Freeh, September 1, 1993 – June 25, 2001". FBI website. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  26. Unger 2018, p. 219.
  27. Hofheinz, Darrell (March 30, 2018). "Deed: Ex-FBI head Louis Freeh linked to $9.38M home purchase". Palm Beach Daily News . Archived from the original on February 2, 2021. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  28. House, Billy (July 12, 2017). "Democrats Ask DOJ About Settlement Involving Trump-Linked Lawyer". Bloomberg News . Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  29. Sullivan, Eileen; Vogel, Kenneth P.; Goldman, Adam; Becker, Jo (July 14, 2017). "Russian-American Lobbyist Attended Meeting Organized by Trump's Son". The New York Times . Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  30. Weiss, Michael (May 4, 2017). "The Russian Attorney at the Center of the Trump Jr. Scandal". CNN . Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  31. Наталья Весельницкая: Последние новости [Natalia Veselnitskaya: Latest News]. The Moscow Post (in Russian). Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  32. 1 2 Gray, Rosie (July 25, 2017). "Bill Browder's Testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee". The Atlantic . Archived from the original on July 26, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2019.
  33. Желающим выйти из "списка Магнитского": просьба с деньгами не беспокоить [Those wishing to leave the "Magnitsky list": please do not disturb with money]. Novaya Gazeta (in Russian). April 7, 2013. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  34. "Скандал с имуществом российских бизнесменов в США. Предприниматель Денис Кацыв заявил "Новой", что его компании продолжают работу в штатном режиме" [Scandal with property of Russian businessmen in the USA. Entrepreneur Denis Katsyv told Novaya Gazeta that his companies continue to operate normally]. Novaya Gazeta (in Russian). September 10, 2013. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  35. Solash, Richard (September 18, 2013). "Could U.S. Assets Seizure Lead To Expansion of Magnitsky Blacklist?". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty . Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  36. Упомянутый в расследованиях о Мишустине бизнесмен Удодов оказался мужем его сестры [The businessman Udodov mentioned in the investigations about Mishustin turned out to be the husband of his sister]. Meduza (in Russian). February 25, 2020. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  37. Telegina, Natalia (February 25, 2020). Бизнесмен Удодов рассказал о своих связях с премьером Мишустиным. Что не так в его откровениях? [Businessman Udodov spoke about his connections with Prime Minister Mishustin. What's wrong with his revelations?]. Открытых медиа]][OpenMedia.io] (in Russian). Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  38. 1 2 3 Telegina, Natalia; Varum, Roman (December 16, 2020). Как семья премьер-министра Мишустина оказалась связана с крупнейшим хищением НДС в истории России [How the family of Prime Minister Mishustin was linked to the largest VAT theft in Russian history]. Открытых медиа[OpenMedia.io] (in Russian). Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  39. 1 2 Фонд борьбы с коррупцией нашел у зятя Михаила Мишустина шесть квартир в Нью-Йорке [The Anti-Corruption Foundation found six apartments in New York with Mikhail Mishustin's brother-in-law]. Echo of Moscow (in Russian). February 27, 2020. Retrieved March 5, 2021.
  40. Korelina, Olga (February 27, 2020). Зять Михаила Мишустина покупал квартиры в Нью-Йорке. В то же время и в том же доме, что и обвиненная в отмывании денег компания из дела Магнитского [Mikhail Mishustin's brother-in-law bought apartments in New York. At the same time and in the same building as the company from the Magnitsky case accused of money laundering]. Meduza (in Russian). Retrieved March 5, 2021.