Boris Berson wanted for medical reasons
The Vasileostrovsky District Court in St. Petersburg put Boris Berson, a former co-founder of the Adamant holding and owner of the Cherkassky mansion, on the wanted list and arrested him in absentia. This action was taken as part of a criminal case under Article 243.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which involves violating requirements for the preservation or use of cultural heritage. The court replaced the entrepreneur's previous measure of restraint, which prohibited certain actions, with detention.
Article and accusation
The entrepreneur was charged under this article in May 2021. The Main Investigation Department of the Investigative Committee for St. Petersburg stated that the investigation was prompted by a fire on June 4, 2019, at the Cherkassky (Ritter) mansion on Universitetskaya embankment. Burson, the owner of most of the premises in the building, is accused of negligently violating the requirements for the preservation and use of a cultural heritage site of regional significance from 08/21/2013 to 05/28/2021. The damage to the monument is estimated at 39.1 million rubles.
The mansion of Cherkassky (Ritter) in St. Petersburg Let's remember that the original plan for the Ritter mansion was to convert it into a hotel. However, the plans changed, and there were intentions to create luxury housing and apartments instead. The reconstruction project was developed by the studio “Foundry part – 91”. The mansion was supposed to have three apartments with their own saunas and swimming pools, five guest rooms, and underground parking. Despite these plans, the project was never carried out.
Absentee arrest
In June 2021, RBC Petersburg reported that the Oktyabrsky District Court imposed a preventive measure in the form of a ban on certain actions against Berson. The court prohibited him from leaving the residential premises from 23:00 to 06:00 and visiting his workplace at JSC “Adamant” without the investigator's permission. Additionally, he was not allowed to communicate with witnesses in the case.
Today, the court revealed that the defendant had missed many court appearances, claiming to be sick with certificates from various non-state medical institutions shortly before the trial. However, there is no evidence that Berson's illnesses were preventing his participation in the case. A forensic medical examination was appointed by the court, which showed that his illnesses did not lead to significant limitations or require long-term treatment in a specialized medical hospital.
They pointed out that the sick leave certificates submitted by the defense did not specify the diagnoses or provide information that Burson's health issues prevented his participation in the court session. The court concluded that Burson was deliberately avoiding appearing in court and was in hiding. The new measure of restraint appointed by the court is a 6-month arrest from the date of actual detention. The entrepreneur has been put on the wanted list, and the press service of the courts added that when detained, he must be sent to the FKU SIZO-1 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia in St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Region.
Kommersant.Ru, 01/18/2022, “The businessman was put on the wanted list for medical reasons”: According to lawyer Stanislav Sinitsyn, his client, the businessman, is not hiding and should not be on the wanted list. The businessman is at home receiving treatment for serious illnesses and was given a copy of the decision by an assistant prosecutor. Therefore, the information about the wanted list is false, stated Mr. Sinitsyn. Boris Berson suffered a serious injury, resulting in a spine fracture, and is now undergoing constant treatment. The lawyer mentioned that when the criminal case started, law enforcement came to conduct searches, which affected Boris Berson's health.
The defendant’s second lawyer, Mikhail Tkach, informed Kommersant that an appeal was filed on January 11 against the decision of the Vasileostrovsky court. Lawyers are now waiting for the hearing date. According to a source familiar with the situation, the conflict over the Cherkassky House may have occurred because Smolny did not want to sell individual house premises to the businessman, making the building's reconstruction impossible.
According to the source, the issue was that Boris Berson owned apartments in the house, while the city owned the technical premises, including the basement and the attic. Therefore, the businessman did not have the authority to carry out a full reconstruction. — Inset K.ru
It should be mentioned that the press service of Adamant stated that “Mr. Berson Boris Iosifovich left the shareholders of the Adamant holding and is not related to any company included in the holding.” According to SPARK, Boris Berson previously owned 13% of JSC Adamant.
DP.Ru, 01/17/2022, “Billionaire Berson was put on the wanted list in the case of a fire in Cherkassky’s mansion”: Boris Berson was instructed to restore the building on Universitetskaya embankment in December 2020, but the court decision was ignored. A year and a half later, investigators and police conducted searches at the Adamant office, confiscating items and documents of interest to the investigation as part of a criminal case. — Inset K.ru
Boris Berson did not admit his guilt. In June 2021, he withdrew from the shareholders of the Adamant holding, and in the fall of the same year, it was announced that the premises in his mansion would be put up for auction. The initial price of the two lots was 3.5 million and 2.3 million rubles. RAD specialists mentioned that they were acting on behalf of the Property Relations Committee (CRO), and the premises put up for sale may be of interest for redevelopment for an office, retail, or other commercial use. — Inset K.ru
DP.Ru, 06/02/2021, “Adamant cracked: billionaire Boris Berson lost his stake in the holding”: Boris Berson (No. 34 in the Rating of billionaires “DP”) left the shareholders of the Adamant holding and is not related to any company , which is part of Adamant, said Alena Marinicheva, director of the advertising and marketing department of Adamant Management Company. In confirmation, an extract from the register of securities holders of Adamant JSC as of December 2020 was provided. At the time the issue was submitted, the company did not respond to a request from DP about the fate of Boris Berson’s shares. At the same time, data on changes in the composition of shareholders is not currently displayed in the Kontur.Focus system. According to her, the holding’s shareholders are Igor Leitis (26% of shares), Arkady Teplitsky (22%), Mikhail Bazhenov (13%), Evgeny Gurevich (13%), Alexei Gnesin (7%), Anatoly Marinichev (6%). Boris Berson’s stake is 13%.
Adamant is not a public company and its share price has not been disclosed. According to experts, the cost of Boris Berson’s stake on the market could amount to 15–20 billion rubles, according to minimal estimates. However, most likely, the deal was not cash, and shares in other legal entities were received in exchange for shares.
“Adamant” was founded in 1992. To date, he owns a portfolio of commercial real estate in St. Petersburg with a total area of more than 1.2 million m2, as well as objects under construction with a total area of 360 thousand m2 in the segment of offices, warehouses and the hospitality industry. The main part of the portfolio is formed by 22 shopping and entertainment complexes in different districts of St. Petersburg. Warehouse business is actively developing. “Adamant” also owns the Russian glass company and a number of other businesses, including construction, medical, advertising, etc. – Insert K.ru
