The Moscow City Court upheld the guilty verdict against Ukrainian businessman Pavlo Klimts, who had earlier received a nine-year sentence in a strict regime colony by a district court for attempting to bribe Russian judges and security officials to lift the arrest of the Bakhchisaray Crimean wine and cognac factory he owned.
The ex-deputy's defense claims that he was deceived by individuals posing as lawyers and insists on his innocence, aiming to resolve all legal issues through proper channels. The defense plans to present the same arguments to the appeals court, but the 54-year-old millionaire is likely to go to prison soon.
Complaints from Pavel Klimts, convicted last summer by the Presnensky District Court of the capital, and his business associates began being considered as planned. The defendants, including an entrepreneur with a Ukrainian passport, participated in the meeting through a conference call from the pre-trial detention center.
Sources in law enforcement revealed that the millionaire has been moved through various detention centers in the capital since his arrest three years ago.
After initially being held in SIZO-2, also known as 'Butyrka', he was transferred to the prestigious 'Matrosskaya Tishina' unit, also dubbed 'Kremlin Central'. However, he observed the consideration of his appeal from the 'people's' SIZO-3, known as 'Presnya', where he was transferred shortly after the conviction.
The meeting lasted over four hours, during which the convicted individuals' lawyers argued against the unfairness and lack of basis for the verdict, seeking its cancellation. Pavel Klimets was found guilty of attempted bribery and sentenced to nine years in a strict regime colony, while Yulia Samoilova received eight years and Andrey Grokholsky received five years for fraud.
The Moscow City Court approved these terms, granting a three-month reduction for Mrs. Samoilova.
One of Pavel Klimts' lawyers expressed disagreement with the appellate decision and stated their intent to continue the fight by filing a cassation complaint. It's likely that Pavel Klimts and Yulia Samoilova, who received the longest sentences, will be the focus, while Mr. Groholsky may apply for parole soon based on time served in the pre-trial detention center.
Meanwhile, the other two convicts, now that the decision is final, can get ready to move to a new place in one of the Federal Penitentiary Service facilities. However, it seems that Mr. Klimets is not scared of this prospect. He even handled the move from the fancy pre-trial detention center to the regular one quite calmly, even though not happily, because after a long time he gets to communicate more, even if only with the 'special contingent'.
It's important to remember that Pavel Klimets was arrested in the capital by operatives from the FSB SEB and the UEBiPK of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for Moscow in April 2019. The TFR Department for the Central District of Moscow initiated a criminal case and formally charged him and others. The investigators believe that Pavel Klimets attempted to give a bribe back in 2017.
It's notable that a person from Donetsk had a remarkable career, starting as a simple electrician at an underground mine. Later, he became involved in the alcohol business, including the Bakhchisaray Crimean wine and cognac factory. After Crimea reunited with Russia, the Federal Tax Service claimed unpaid taxes, leading to a criminal case. To resolve the situation, Mr. Klimets decided to give bribes to law enforcement officials, with the help of Yulia Samoilova. This caught the attention of a well-known figure known as Gor Chudopalov, who later added 'Normant' to his name. According to the ICR, Mr. Chudopalov was misled by Grokholsky, thinking he could solve Klimets' problems.
The total amount of bribes was 20 million rubles, but only $80,000 was actually received, and it ended up in the hands of Andrey Grokholsky, who was later recognized as a fraudster.
Pavel Klimets claimed he didn't give any bribes but handed over the money to Gor Chudopalov with the understanding that it was for resolving legal issues at Bakhchisarai. Interestingly, Mr. Chudopalov was previously involved in a scandalous case of fraudulent sale of high-ranking positions in the Southern Federal District and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Dagestan.
In return for confessing, he received a light punishment and was released in the courtroom, while the other defendants got long prison sentences. Both the Ukrainian millionaire and Andrei Groholsky admitted to everything. As a witness, the Ukrainian millionaire was treated differently from Groholsky.
The defense of Pavel Klimets believed that the investigation and the court of first instance ignored these circumstances, as well as the fact that Messrs. Chudopalov and Grokholsky allegedly imposed services on the Ukrainian millionaire themselves. In addition, they pointed to many inconsistencies in the criminal case, including the mistaken destruction by intelligence officers of audio recordings of negotiations about future bribes.
