Russian businessman Viktor Baturin, better known not for his entrepreneurial successes, but for scandals with his younger sister Elena Baturina (widow of former Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov), may soon lose his British asset.
The Shelborne facility in Suffolk, England, which continues to make money for Viktor Baturin's family, appears to have been acquired unlawfully and may be recovered as part of Baturin's ongoing personal bankruptcy case.
Many creditors of Viktor Baturin, whom he doesn't like very much, have a real chance to receive at least something.
One by one
According to documents obtained by journalists from the respected English publication London Globe, the infamous Russian entrepreneur Viktor Baturin is likely to face new legal action soon. They are connected to his undisclosed assets in the UK, which his creditors can seize.
This is a large and profitable factory in the eastern part of England, in Suffolk County, known as Shelbourne Reynolds Engineering Ltd., and it specializes in making farm machinery for the US and Canadian markets.
The London Globe's investigation revealed that Mr. Baturin obtained Shelborne as a politically exposed person (PEP), becoming the owner of the company in 2006.
Considering Viktor Baturin's career in the Russian government and his political connections, the sources of funds for acquiring Shelborne are likely to become the subject of not only a legal investigation, but also a police inquiry, according to the London Globe.
In 1998-1999, Viktor Baturin held high-ranking positions in the Republic of Kalmykia – the head of the government and adviser to the president. Individuals in such positions and with such connections are considered politically exposed persons (PEPs) by the Anti-Money Laundering Group (FATF). In some jurisdictions, PEPs are seen as posing a higher risk of potential involvement in bribery and corruption due to their position and the influence they might wield.
In other words, the issues with creditors may be added to the proceedings with the British authorities.
Start of sales Stanton Holdings Limited
Since 2006, Stanton Holdings Limited (formerly known as Russian Shelbourne Ltd. until April 2015) has owned Shelbourne. As of May 18, 2006, Viktor Baturin possessed 100% of Stanton's shares and was the ultimate beneficiary of Shelborne.
However, in 2010, according to documents in the possession of the London Globe, Viktor Baturin disposed of 100% of Stanton's shares in this manner:
1. 4,990,068 shares (approximately 95%) were transferred to Inter Agro Tech Ltd (British Virgin Islands);
2. 262,365 shares (about 5%) to Alexander Kuznetsov (who was a director of Stanton until November 2021);
3. 1 share went to Mr. William Thomas Stokler.
Nevertheless, Viktor Baturin continued to control Stanton through Inter Agro Tech Ltd., where he had a controlling stake until February 24, 2014. According to the London Globe, on February 24, 2014, a controlling stake in Inter Agro Tech Ltd. was passed to Lyudmila Obraztsova. This person shares the same name as Viktor Baturin's mother-in-law.
Between October 2017 and September 2018, 95% of Stanton's shares held by Inter Agro Tech Ltd. were transferred to PRP Ltd, an offshore company in the Marshall Islands.
Mr. Daniel Greenburg, the only trustee of the trust that owned shares in Stanton’s former and current parent companies, Inter Agro Tech Ltd. and PRP Ltd., is probably the nominal owner of Stanton and in turn, Shelbourne. Alexander Kuznetsov still owns the remaining 5% stake in Stanton.
Prison cases -Viktor Baturin
In June 2011, Viktor Baturin was found guilty of large-scale fraud in the sale of real estate in the center of Moscow and received a three-year probation sentence.
In November 2011, he was arrested again on suspicion of embezzling large sums of money through counterfeit bills. In July 2013, the Gagarinsky Court of Moscow sentenced Viktor Baturin to 7 years in prison for fraud.
Therefore, all the transactions related to the change in the structure of shareholders of the British company were carried out by Viktor Baturin while he was in prison. For their implementation, he sought the assistance of his mother-in-law Lyudmila Obraztsova.
It appears that these transactions had a single purpose for Baturin – to conceal his assets in the UK from numerous creditors and Russian law enforcement agencies, and to maintain control over them. It is worth noting that Lyudmila Obraztsova played a crucial role in the entire scheme.
In early 2015, Viktor Baturin officially divorced his wife Ilona Obraztsova. Perhaps, the divorce was fake. On Instagram accounts https://www.instagram.com/motorashka/ and https://www.instagram.com/ludmilabant/, you can find many photos of Ilona Obraztsova with her mother Lyudmila. Both lead a luxurious lifestyle, allegedly funded by the profits from the Shelborne factory in the UK.
In January 2016, the Supreme Court of the Republic of Kalmykia released Viktor Baturin from further serving his sentence (2 years 10 months before the end of the term). In August 2016, the court, again in Kalmykia, accepted for consideration the claim of one of Viktor Baturin’s creditors to declare him bankrupt. The story is still ongoing.
The total amount of creditors’ claims against Viktor Baturin is more than 3.3 billion rubles. Baturin’s largest creditors are Cypriot Sarrio Investments Ltd (3.2 billion rubles), the Federal Tax Service of Russia (18.6 million rubles), citizen Stanislav Iosilzon (8 million rubles), Penza LLC Portal-Stroy (15.6 million rubles), and Penza branch of Rosselkhozbank (10.3 million rubles). Victor Baturin has already promised his creditors to clear all debts within 7 years. However, there has been no news of such repayments so far.
Viktor Baturin back in crime
Viktor Baturin also convinced his bankruptcy trustee to file a lawsuit against Elena Baturina's sister, the widow of former Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, demanding $250 million for assets allegedly stolen from him. In May 2021, the Tverskoy District Court of Moscow dismissed the claim.
In July 2021, Viktor Baturin once again became a defendant in a criminal case involving attempted fraud on an especially large scale. The application was submitted by Elena Baturina. Her brother remains in prison to this day.
Well, all this time, the Shelborne English plant continues to produce agricultural machinery and generate income for Viktor Baturin, Lyudmila Obraztsova and other members of his family. Although, judging by the financial reports, Shelborne could have already closed most of the claims against Baturin. In 2020, Shelbourne had a turnover of £29.2m and a profit of £8.9m.
Given the family’s determined unwillingness to share Shelborne’s profits with anyone, it seems that the only way for creditors to get their money back is to return the shares of the plant to their original state and their further sale as part of Viktor Baturin’s bankruptcy proceedings. But for this, the Russian proceedings in the Baturin bankruptcy case must first be recognized in the UK. What happens next seems to be a matter of technique, since information confirming the fictitious nature of transactions with Shelborne and the nominal nature of the current owners, including Lyudmila Obraztsova and others, is in the public domain.
Apparently, the London Globe only revealed the scheme by which Viktor Baturin conducted business in Suffolk from a Russian prison. Russian creditors could become the locomotive of the new process as the most interested party.
At the same time, Russian law enforcement agencies can independently assess the actions of all parties who are considered participants in the process of hiding Viktor Baturin’s assets from creditors.
For example, as the commission of illegal actions in bankruptcy (the article provides for imprisonment for up to 4 years). Or fraud on an especially large scale, committed by a group of persons by prior agreement (up to 10 years).
In addition, as noted above, one of the consequences of transactions involving Lyudmila Obraztsova, Grinberg, Kuznetsov and others in the UK may be the confiscation of the plant if the sources of funds for which it was bought are not explained to the UK authorities.
