London's Court of Appeal yesterday ruled Lithuania, give the owners of the two failed banks - Snoras Lithuanian and Latvian Latvijas krajbanka - 39-year-old Russian Vladimir Antonov, and 57-year-old Lithuanian Raimondas Baranauskas. Both are suspected of embezzlement in the amount of at least € 492 million, forgery of financial documents, conduct of false accounting and banking and accounting malpractice. However, those living with their families in London of ex-bankers still possible to appeal against a decision on their extradition to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom.

The case of the extradition to Lithuania Vladimir Antonov and Raimondas Baranauskas was received by the Court of Appeal after last January consent to the issuance of Westminster Magistrate's Court gave. Then all the assertions of protecting themselves and financiers, as if deliberately bankrupted the Lithuanian authorities and nationalized Snoras for citizenship Vladimir Antonov and opposition in relation to the Lithuanian authorities political views Raimondas Baranauskas, were considered "unprovable".

Recallthat the Lithuanian bank Snoras and its Latvian "daughter» Latvijas krajbanka, then owned by Russian Vladimir Antonov (68.1% stake) and its Lithuanian partner Raimondas Baranauskas (25.13%) were declared bankrupt in November 2011. At the request of crisis administrator Snoras British court has seized property of Vladimir Antonov (three real estate in the UK - one in Jurmala in Latvia and another - in Limassol, Cyprus), shares of companies owned by him - Convers Group Holding, Convers Sports Initiatives, Pensions Bank et al., as well as 19 bank accounts in the UK, Switzerland, Latvia, Austria and Ukraine.

According to the Lithuanian authorities, ex-bankers Antonov and Baranauskas owned several offshore companies in the Dominican Republic, Belize, Cyprus, the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands, through which its financial shenanigans. In addition, through the funds belonging to the Russian citizen Swiss foundation directed to the account of Gemini Investment Fund Ltd in Latvijas krajbanka. It is known that in the summer of 2011, this fund has given a loan of € 25 million Swedish Automobile NV (Dutch owner of Saab). In addition, part of the funds of depositors was to fiansirovanie activities of the Latvian budget carrier airBaltic.

According to the prosecution, for the transfer of funds from Snoras ex-bankers used the services of the Swiss bank HSBC Private Bank and of the company Julius Baer & Co., with Snoras assets serve as collateral in obtaining loans for various companies in one way or another connected with Vladimir Antonov. Some of these loans were not returned, and pledge themselves were false.

As a result, in Lithuania, both charged with embezzlement in a large scale (up to ten years' imprisonment), forgery of financial documents (up to six years), keeping false accounts and bank account (up to four years) and abuse of power (up to six years) .

According to Vladimir Antonov, Snoras case is an attempt to "political violence" over it, and instructed to "drown" the bank was given by President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaite for criticizing the Lithuanian authorities in the Lithuanian media (in 2009 Snoras Bank purchased shares influential media group Lietuvos rytas). "Therefore, we talk about though Snoras shareholders allegedly stole money from natsionalizirovannth bank - this is sheer nonsense, because the steal and hide the 1 billion litas - this is a business process that need to be properly managed. If we are alert to the possibility that the bank will be completely plundered by us, the money we would have taken away from it ", - said earlier Vladimir Antonov.