Hermitage Capital CEO Browder Urges Interpol to Suspend Russia's Membership

LONDON (Sputnik) — Hermitage Capital Management CEO William Browder, who was sentenced in Russia in absentia for tax dodging, on Friday urged Interpol to suspend Russia's membership in connection with the "flagrant" violation of the organization's rules after it agreed to re-review Russia's application to add the businessman to the wanted list.

The Russian Prosecutor General's Office continues to seek the launch of the procedure for the international search and extradition of Browder. Interpol previously rejected Russia's application for his international search, but, according to prosecutor Alexei Polyakov, after the Russian State Duma supplemented its request with new data, Interpol agreed to return to this issue and re-review the appeal of the Prosecutor General's Office to add Browder to the international wanted list and extradite him.

"Russia is applying to Interpol for the 6th time for my arrest after the previous 5 requests were rejected as illegitimate and political. It’s time for Interpol to suspend Russia’s membership for flagrant abuse of the Interpol system," Browder said on Twitter.

On Friday, Moscow's Tverskoy court found Browder, once the largest foreign portfolio investor in Russia, guilty of tax dodging and sentenced him in absentia to nine years in prison. Browder’s business partner Ivan Cherkasov was sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison. The investigation estimated the total damage from the actions of Browder and his business partner at 3.5 billion rubles. In 2013, Browder has already been sentenced to the same term in a separate case, but the aggregate term is the same nine years of imprisonment. Both Browder and Cherkasov are residing in London. The United Kingdom has denied their extradition to Russia.