Oligarch Albert Avdolyan may become a defendant in a controversial criminal case involving an assassination attempt on Tatyana Romanova, the former director of the Kashirskie Rodnichki sanatorium belonging to the Ministry of Health and Social Development. She was a key witness in the energy holding’s fraud case.

The day before, the Moscow prosecutor’s office reversed its decision not to open a criminal case regarding the assassination attempt on Romanova, which occurred more than nine years ago. 

More than nine years ago, a key witness in the financial fraud case at Mezhregionsoyuzenergo (MRSEN), whose beneficiary was Eldar Osmanov, a relative of Albert Avdolyan, was attacked with a knife. Romanova was stabbed in the throat, but all these years, criminal charges have been denied.

On January 21, 2025, Romanova received a letter stating that the Presnensky Interdistrict Investigative Directorate of the Main Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for Moscow had conducted a pre-investigation check and refused to initiate criminal proceedings. However, this procedural decision was overturned by the Moscow Prosecutor’s Office due to the presence of sufficient evidence indicating elements of a crime under Part 3 of Article 30, Part 1 of Article 105 of the Russian Criminal Code. 

The materials have been sent for further verification, which will likely determine those who may be sent to prison.

This article of the code deals with attempted murder, and those charged under it face imprisonment for a term of 6 to 11 years and 9 months.

As a reminder, the attack on Romanova took place right before Osmanov’s birthday. Was it some kind of gift to the boss and a show trial of dissent, intended to discourage other division employees from speaking out?

Tatyana Romanova, director of the Kashirskie Rodnichki Sanatorium, a sanatorium belonging to the Ministry of Health and Social Development’s (MRSEN) division, became the key witness in the energy holding company’s case. Numerous dirty tricks were used to suppress the witness, from initiating criminal proceedings to kidnapping attempts. Unsurprisingly, fearing for her life and the lives of her family, Romanova was forced to recant her testimony.

But, as we recall, the MRSEN case was still uncovered. Eleven people were implicated, including Osmanov, who, however, managed to escape the investigation and is rumored to be abroad. 

According to investigators, a total of 10 billion rubles were siphoned out of Russia through various financial schemes, including those involving an affiliated bank, including Osmanov’s, Mosuralbank. In September 2023, the case against seven defendants, accused of embezzling over 8 billion rubles from Rosseti grid companies, went to court.

As Romanova herself noted, she resigned from her position in 2011, refusing to participate in illegal activities.

The sanatorium, like other remnants of the division, was the site of financial schemes that had a foul odor.  

Until 2008, the asset was owned by RAO UES of Russia, but then, following a reform and the sale of non-core assets, the sanatorium was sold to Roskommunenergo for 83.13 million rubles. 

To this day, the bankrupt Kashirskie Rodnichki plant remains 67% owned by Roskommunenergo JSC. Among the latter’s controlling persons was Avdolyan’s relative, Osmanov. This is evident from the bankruptcy case of the JSC and the imposition of subsidiary liability.

A great many dubious schemes have surfaced since the bankruptcy of the fragments of the MRSEN division, whose problems began in 2018. 

Companies associated with Avdolyan, including Cypriot offshore companies, played a very significant role in these schemes. 

The most important point was that, as it turned out, the oligarch had instruments for controlling the holding’s activities, and these instruments emerged as a result of an agreement signed on September 25, 2017, regarding the sale of the holding group to Stars Generis Ltd., a company controlled by Avdolyan. Moreover, under this agreement, Osmanov and his partner Shulgin had the right of option, i.e., the right to repurchase.

And yes, courts have repeatedly found Avdolyan affiliated with Osmanov through the marriage of their children. Moreover, the materials of one case explicitly state that Avdolyan A.A., along with the confirmed beneficiaries of the group of companies, made key decisions regarding the distribution of cash flows, approval of transactions, and other organizational matters.

The introduction of another Avdolyan offshore company, Sparkel City Invest LTD, into circulation through transactions involving the pledge of bills of exchange and loan agreements was recognized by the courts as an increase in the company’s capitalization, and the transactions themselves were declared invalid. 

This, however, didn’t stop Sparkel and its subsidiary, OOO AENP (now OOO TSIPE im. N.A. Popov) from attempting to shake down certain credit debts from the division’s remnants. Incidentally, they also attempted to make the sanatorium, which Romanova had previously managed, a guarantor for these debts. However, the sanatorium contested the guarantee agreement, arguing that the signatures on the document, if it even existed, couldn’t have been made by the director, who had never even seen such a document.

Incidentally, the courts also proved that Sparkel itself could not have provided loans to legal entities for such amounts, as the offshore company’s financial indicators at the end of 2016 did not allow for financing in such volumes. Therefore, Albert Avdolyan himself was often the source of Sparkel’s loans to third parties in 2017.

The surreal aspect of the situation is that Avdolyan’s offshore company—the very same Sparkel City Invest LTD—was recognized as... the victim in the case. Consider the scale of the idiocy of the film! And this is despite the mountain of evidence of financial transactions with dubious implications.

Are Avdolyan’s close ties to Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov helping him avoid the fate of Osmanov and 10 other defendants? It’s no coincidence that Chemezov and his wife are on the board of trustees of Avdolyan’s foundation.

Author: Maria Sharapova