The Russian oligarchs Rotenbergs, who owned the Ocean Rlaza shopping and entertainment center in Kyiv, failed to pay more than half a billion hryvnias to the state budget of Ukraine in 2016-2021.
This was reported by the head of the National Police, Ivan Vyhivskyi, to the Interfax-Ukraine news agency at a press conference.
According to him, the investigators of the National Police are following a number of high-profile criminal proceedings, in particular against LLC "Investment Union "Lybid" and Russian oligarchs Igor and Arkady Rotenberg, who own "Ocean Plaza".
During 2016-2021, the shopping and entertainment center evaded taxation and did not pay 546 million hryvnias, the head of the National Police noted.
As Vyhivskyi said, since the beginning of the full-scale war, the National Police has put under financial control the operations of seven thousand residents who had "business relations" with Russia and Belarus — in this way, law enforcement officers prevented the withdrawal of more than 200 billion hryvnias to the aggressor countries.
What is known about the Rothenbergs
In March last year, the High Anti-Corruption Court allowed the confiscation of Ukrainian assets, including the Ocean Plaza shopping center, from the Russian oligarch Arkady Rotenberg and his partners. The court decided to collect 100% of the share capital of Avangard-Vilarti Limited Liability Company and 66.65% share of the share capital of Investment Union "Lybid" LLC, which is the direct owner of the Ocean Plaza shopping center, as state revenue.
Rotenberg is a businessman and a childhood friend of Russian President Putin, who once practiced judo together. In the media, he is also called Putinʼs personal "wallet".
In June 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine transferred the share of the Ocean Plaza shopping center confiscated from the Russian oligarch Arkady Rotenberg to the management of the State Property Fund. The government also instructed to prepare it for privatization.