Moscow: A Moscow court on Thursday ruled to move Michael Calvey, a prominent American investor who has been behind bars since mid-February on controversial fraud charges, from pre-trial jail to house arrest.
The move came after some of Moscow’s most powerful figures called on the Kremlin to let him go, warning his arrest could discourage the foreign investment Russia’s economy badly needs.
Judge Yulia Safina of Moscow’s Basmanny District Court accepted a request filed by state investigators and ordered Calvey released “in the courtroom,” an AFP correspondent said.
Addressing the judge in Russian from his glass cage, Calvey promised to abide by the conditions of the house arrest. “To run from Russia for me would be to admit my guilt,” said Calvey, who looked gaunt and did not smile.
Calvey will be confined to his apartment located in an upscale building in central Moscow. His lawyers said he would wear a house arrest monitor.
The founder of the Baring Vostok investment fund, established in 1994, was arrested in February with five other individuals, and accused of defrauding Vostochny Bank of 2.5 billion rubles ($38.7 million).
Calvey is seen as a Kremlin-friendly investor who has steered clear of politics and his arrest has shocked Western business circles.
His multi-billion-dollar equity firm has invested in some of Russia’s biggest companies including Yandex, the Russian search giant, and Ozon, a top online retailer.
Calvey’s release from pre-trial jail came after a Russian court this week ordered the release from house arrest of renowned film and theatre director Kirill Serebrennikov, who is on trial on embezzlement charges.
Calvey and his firm maintain that the case against them is fabricated and being used as an instrument in a shareholder dispute. — AFP
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