Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich appears in Swiss court
Xinhua,May 03, 2018 Adjust font size:
GENEVA, May 2 (Xinhua) -- A court in the Swiss city of Fribourg opened legal proceedings Wednesday against Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, accused of defrauding a publicly-funded European bank of millions of U.S. dollars.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is suing the Russian energy company Gazprom, co-owned by Abramovich, for payment of a long-standing multi-million-dollar loan, the Swiss News Agency SDA-ATS reported.
Abramovich is best known as the owner of the British Premier League football club Chelsea. He arrived at the court with tight security around him.
The civil proceedings are also against Gazprom's co-owner Evgeny Shvidler.
The case about the intricate business dealings dates to 2000 and has broad international dimensions.
It also involves a Swiss-based company, Runicom, based in Fribourg.
Gazprom argues that a Swiss court has no jurisdiction in the case, but the Swiss Supreme Court has ruled that the case can be heard in Switzerland. Enditem