Prosecutor says Khodorkovsky stole 2.65 bln rbl for Gusinsky

Prosecutor Dmitry Shokhin told Moscow’s Meshchansky Court Wednesday that the former CEO of oil major Yukos Mikhail Khodorkovsky had stolen 2.65 billion rubles for media tycoon Vladimir Gusinsky in the period from July 5, 1999 to April 28, 2000.

The prosecutor’s statement forms part of the accusations in the Khodorkovsky case, which is now being heard at the Meshchansky Court. It is expected to continue Thursday.

On July 15, Khodorkovsky and his business partner Platon Lebedev pleaded not guilty to all charges against them.

Khodorkovsky and Lebedev, both in jail since last year, are charged with large-scale fraud and tax evasion, with charges centering on the 1994 privatization of the Apatit fertilizer company, one of the deals that is believed to have helped Khodorkovsky build a business empire that made him Russia's richest man.

Gusinsky, who is living in exile, is sought by Russian authorities on a U.S. $262 million fraud charge.

Gusinsky claims the charges are politically motivated because NTV, the independent TV channel he used to own, openly criticized the Kremlin and the war in Chechnya. (29.0815 rubles – U.S.$ 1) End



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