Villa del Mare, worth 120 million euros, is officially owned by businessman Samvel Karapetyan, but the beneficiary of the villa is a subsidiary of Gazprom.
The French court has frozen the ownership of the villa Irina Maria in the resort of Roquebrune-cap-Martin (Côte d’Azur). Officially, it is owned by Russian-Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetyan. This was reported by the French newspaper Le Monde on Monday, February 19.
Prosecutors in Paris believe the real beneficiary of the villa is a subsidiary of Russian oil and gas giant Gazprom.
The villa, known locally as Villa del Mare, is located on a plot of 3 hectares. The facility, which occupies several floors of the main building, also includes three swimming pools, tennis courts and a helipad. The total value of this property is 120 million euros.
The order to freeze ownership of the villa, as well as the shares of the company that owns it, SNC Maritime Villa Holding, is dated February 12, 2024.
AFP said Villa Irina Maria was investigated by the Paris prosecutor’s office fighting organized crime (Junalco) for money laundering under heavy circumstances, committed since December 11, 2009 in Paris, Cyprus, Russia and Roquebrune Cap -Martene.
Gazprom Neft, a subsidiary of Gazprom, sold the villa to Samvel Karapetyan in 2016. During Junalco’s preliminary investigation, several facts were discovered indicating that the villa never left Gazprom Neft’s control.
Samvel Karapetyan bought shares in the real estate company Maritime Villa Holding SNC in Gazprom Neft thanks to a loan of 115 million euros issued by Gazprombank. The latter is owned by Gazprom and Yuri Kovalchuk, who is considered a close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The loan was provided by a Russian bank in exchange for collateral for the villa.
Samvel Karapetyan is the president of the Tashir group of companies, which operates in the field of real estate, construction, energy and finance. Forbes magazine estimates the businessman’s wealth at $2.7 billion.
As already reported, Ukraine has nationalized the oil and gas assets of Russian sanctioned oligarch Eduard Khudainatov for 500 million Hryvnia.
Earlier, it was also learned about the nationalization of the assets of Russian oligarch Andrei Molchanov for 437.5 million Hryvnia. Then we talk about 24 pieces of property in Kyiv and Lviv regions, cash in accounts and finished products.
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Source: korrespondent
I’m Liza Grey, an experienced news writer and author at the Buna Times. I specialize in writing about economic issues, with a focus on uncovering stories that have a positive impact on society. With over seven years of experience in the news industry, I am highly knowledgeable about current events and the ways in which they affect our daily lives.