Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman has been arrested in London on suspicion of money laundering and fraud – and released on bail. The National Crime Agency (NCA) reports a large-scale operation against a 58-year-old “wealthy Russian businessman” who was arrested at his multi-million dollar home.

The Russian agency TASS writes that it is the oligarch Mikhail Fridman. Apparently, the billionaire has since been released on bail.

Together with Pyotr Aven, Mikhail Fridman founded Russia’s largest private bank, Alfa-Bank. He also heads the LetterOne Group based in Luxembourg.

Fridman is among more than 1,200 people sanctioned by the European Union over the war in Ukraine. His bow should be frozen. A few days after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the businessman wrote to his employees: “War can never be the solution.” Fridman and his partner Awen had also announced they wanted to take legal action against the EU sanctions.

The entrepreneur Mikhail Fridman was born in Lviv (then Soviet Union – today Ukraine) and has an Israeli passport in addition to the Russian one.

Commenting on the operation against the Russian entrepreneur, Graeme Biggar, NCA director general, said: “The NCA’s anti-kleptocracy cell, established just this year, has had notable successes in investigating potential criminal activities by oligarchs, the professional service providers who support them and… enable and those associated with the Russian regime.”

Fridman’s son Alexander Oschelky, who lives in Dubai, also complained in a video that he was affected by sanctions. The 23-year-old says he was against the war from day 1 and doesn’t understand why his position doesn’t count. He protested against the war in London and considers himself a Ukrainian.

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