Dmitri Rybolovlev’s lawyer Tom Jacquardi spoke about the details of the billionaire’s detention. According to Jacquardi, Rybolovlev was detained by the police for more than a day, and he did not answer any of the questions asked. “The length of detention of Dmitry Rybolovlev at the Monaco police, in my opinion, was extremely long. He was detained from Tuesday morning, November 6 until Wednesday morning, November 7. Rybolovlev did not answer any of the questions asked to him, ”said the lawyer. According to him, the refusal to answer questions is a deliberate position that Rybolovlev and his advocates took over a year ago. “We wrote a letter to the judge explaining this position,” he noted.
Representatives of Rybolovlev for the first time told about the details of the interrogation of a businessman. Previously, they were reported only by French media, citing sources. So, the newspaper Nice-Matin wrote that just a billionaire was asked 600 questions.
Rybolovleva, whose fortune Forbes estimated at $ 6.8 billion in 2018, was detained in Monaco on November 6. The next day, November 7, the businessman was released under judicial control, accusing him of the case of "corruption and trafficking in influence," connected with his dispute with Swiss art dealer Yves Bouvier. Details of the charges are not disclosed.
Rybolovlev in 2015 accused Bouvier of overcharging the paintings sold to him by half — worth about $ 1 billion. The Monaco prosecutor's office then began an investigation, the art dealer was detained and charged with fraud and complicity in money laundering.
In 2017, the French newspaper Le Monde reported that Rybolovlev had friendly relations with the ex-Minister of Justice of the Principality, Philippe Narmino, thanks to whom the billionaire influenced justice with respect to Bouvier. In particular, the newspaper reported that Narmino rested in the Rybolovlev chalet shortly before the detention of the art dealer. After this publication, Narmino resigned.
On November 8 of this year, several former and current officials of Monaco were arrested, including Narmino and the head of the Monaco police unit Christophe Azhe, as well as his wife and son Narmino. They were accused of trading in influence, passive corruption and violating the secrecy of the investigation.
November 10, the representative Rybolovleva said that he arrived in Moscow.
Rybolovlev remains in Moscow, the lawyer confirmed today: judicial control, under which he is located, does not imply a ban on movement or obligations to be "noted" somewhere. “The duty of the suspects who have been charged is not to communicate with each other. The meetings of Dmitry Rybolovlev, which is now in Moscow, are held in different countries and cities that he attends - in Monaco, in Switzerland, in Paris, in London and many others, ”said Jacquardi.