Court dismisses complaint of Levon Harutyunyan’s lawyer

Moscow’ Basmanny court upheld the investigator’s refusal to allow lawyer Alexander Harutyunyan to defend businessman Levon Hayrapetyan charged with money laundering and misuse in connection with the sale of Bashneft Company shares.

“The court dismissed the complaint of Hayarapetyan’s lawyer as it did not find grounds for recognizing his demands as legal,” the court spokeswoman Anna Fadeyeva told ITAR-TASS.

Earlier the investigator motivated his decision by the fact that L. Hayrapetyan himself indicated in his application which three lawyers should represent his interests. A. Harutyunyan was not included in that list.

The testimony of Igor Izmestyev, an ex-senator of Bashkiria currently serving a life term for particularly grave crimes, became a ground for Hayrapetyan’s detention. The ex-senator said Hayrapetyan was allegedly involved in the 2009 sale of Bashneft shares by the son of former Bashkir president Ural Rakhimov to Sistema Company.

Levon Hayrapetyan is accused of complicity in money laundering and misuse. He denies all the charges against him.
In addition, it became known earlier that another case was opened against L. Hayrapetyan based on an application of Izmestyev’s mother claiming that Hayrapetyan embezzled $700,000 from her.

The head of Sistema Company Vladimir Yervtushenkov was placed under house arrest on September 16. On September 17 a source familiar with the investigation said that new persons are likely to be involved in the case of Bashneft shares misuse.