The Moscow City Court upheld the pre-trial detention of Oleg Varyukhin, a 60-year-old former pilot and perfume businessman, on state treason charges on Wednesday, according to a report by the exiled outlet Mediazona. Russian investigators allege that Varyukhin committed treason by paying mandatory taxes as an individual entrepreneur into the Ukrainian state budget.
Moscow court upholds detention of businessman accused of treason for paying taxes in Ukraine
The Moscow City Court upheld the pre-trial detention of Oleg Varyukhin, a 60-year-old former pilot and perfume businessman, on state treason charges on Wednesday, according to a report by the exiled outlet Mediazona. Russian investigators allege that Varyukhin committed treason by paying mandatory taxes as an individual entrepreneur into the Ukrainian state budget.
Varyukhin was reportedly arrested in early May after flying into Moscow from Moldova to visit relatives. His defense attorney, Yury Shel, told Mediazona that Varyukhin had obtained a Ukrainian business license in 2014 and was traveling on a temporary travel certificate issued by the Russian Embassy in Moldova.
Before the treason charge was brought, Varyukhin was reportedly subjected to so-called 'carousel arrests' on charges of disorderly conduct between May and July. He served four consecutive 15-day jail terms before being transferred to a pre-trial detention facility on July 22, according to Mediazona. Two of the court rulings in that period identified Varyukhin as a Russian citizen, while the other two redacted his personal data.
Mediazona reported that Varyukhin was last issued a passport in Russia in 1981 and has never obtained Russian or Ukrainian passports following the collapse of the Soviet Union.
State treason carries a maximum sentence of life in prison under Russian law. The Moscow Times stated it was unable to independently verify the details of Mediazona's report.
- The source does not state the specific date in early May on which Varyukhin was arrested.
- The source does not state whether Varyukhin holds any current citizenship, given that he reportedly holds neither a Russian nor a Ukrainian passport issued after the Soviet collapse.
- The source does not include any statement or response from Russian investigators or prosecutors regarding the treason allegation.
- The source does not state the next scheduled court date or procedural step in Varyukhin's case.
- The source does not explain the legal basis under which Varyukhin was classified as a Russian citizen in two of the disorderly conduct rulings, while his personal data was redacted in the other two.
Read the original at The Moscow Times