Even after five years, the Special State Prosecutor's Office (SDT) has not decided whether to bring charges against Russian businessman Igor Lazurenko, and investigators led by Milivoje Katnić are still determining whether he bought and then reconstructed the elite hotels "Avala" and "Bjanka", in Budva and Kolašin.
When "Vijesti" asked whether a decision had been made, SDT replied that the investigation is still ongoing.
"The investigation of possible irregularities in connection with the reconstruction of the hotel 'Avala' in Budva and 'Bjanka' in Kolašin is still in progress," said special prosecutor Sanja Jovićević in her reply to "News", stressing that in the cases in which persons were reported , suspected, accused or accused of criminal acts, the SDT points to the presumption of innocence provided for by the Constitution and the Code of Criminal Procedure, which implies that everyone is considered innocent until their guilt is established by a final court decision. SDT did not answer whether Lazurenko was questioned in the investigation.
Extensive documentation, along with the statements of Lazurenko's close associates, was handed over to the SDT five years ago, when a scheme was presented that allegedly transferred tens of millions of euros of dirty money to Montenegro from offshore companies based in the British Virgin Islands and Panama. .
Two years ago, SDT also hired a court expert in the field of construction, who analyzed the documentation.
Allegedly, it is about 50 million euros that were transferred to Montenegro, but it is still being determined whether it is dirty money.
Hotel "Avala" was sold in 2003 for 3,2 million euros to the company "Beppler & Jacobson Montenegro", the Montenegrin branch of the London company "Beppler & Jacobson LTD".
Nine years later, before the Court of Arbitration in London, one of the company's co-owners, Zoran Bećirović, filed a lawsuit against Lazurenko, and the story began to unravel.
Two years later, the Montenegrin businessman won the court case, and was subsequently paid, and during the proceedings numerous details about the business of Lazurenko, who could not prove the origin of the money, came to light.
Since then, Katnić's prosecutors have been investigating whether Lazurenko invested eight million euros in the reconstruction of "Avala" and "Bianka", which, according to the former managers of the Russian oil company TNK-BP (British Petroeleum), he illegally took from the coffers of that company while was director of the logistics sector.
Before the London court, the executive director of that oil company German Han, vice president Vladislav Jegurov and director of internal economic security Boris Levin confirmed that Lazurenko took at least eight million euros from that company. Allegedly, Lazurenko admitted this to them at a meeting in Moscow, but he never signed the recognition agreement because he left the Russian capital with his family, where he never returned, and a warrant was issued for him. Since then, Lazurenko freely comes to Montenegro and often stays in his hotel.
His former business partners from Russia claimed that money from their oil company flowed to the subsidiary company "TOC-BVI", because Lazurenko, as a director, had the right to pay it money, which he did.
Then money was allegedly transferred from the daughter company to offshore companies that he informally controlled, and from those accounts he paid for the reconstruction of hotels in Budva and Kolašin.
Documents submitted three years ago to prosecutors show that TOC-BVI concluded marketing contracts with Eastonberry Busieness LLC, a company based in Panama. Although Didimo Bayard Moreno and Antonio Alvarez Molino appear as the founders of the company, the documents show that "Eastonberry Busieness LLC" paid numerous bills for the reconstruction of the "Avala" hotel.
Among the many pieces of evidence is the communication between Lazurenko and "Beppler & Jacobson" lawyer Branko Čolović, from which it can be seen that "Eastonberry Busieness LLC" paid into the account of the company "Tijana treding" money for the purchase of ventilation and kitchens for the hotel "Avala".
However, the flow of money did not end there, so he transferred from "Eastonberry Busieness LLC" to the new company "Sobenco LTD". The headquarters of that company is in the British Virgin Islands, and it was founded by Svetlana Lazurenka, Igor's wife. The two companies have concluded an agreement on the transfer of oil derivatives, and money was paid from the account of "Sobenac" to Montenegrin state institutions for the purchase of certain properties.
"Avala" traded from Panama
The money for the purchase of the "Avala" hotel arrived from Panama to be deposited in the account of the Podgorica Commercial Court.
The prosecutors have in front of them complete documentation on how 3,2 million euros were paid for the purchase of the Budva hotel.
The money for the purchase of the hotel was paid to the account of "Beppler & Jacobson Montenegro", in addition to the central company from London, by the off-shore company "Luburia invest", based on a credit loan. Svetlana Lazurenko was at the head of "Luburia invest", which was registered two and a half decades ago in the British Virgin Islands. She "exited", the headquarters was moved to Panama, and the head of the company was Marcel Telser, one of the key people who controlled Lazurenko's companies and cash flows.
In 2003, the company "Lubiria" paid 1,6 million euros to the company "Beppler & Jacobson" through Swiss banks, which were then transferred to the account of the Commercial Court.
A year later, the rest of 1,6 million euros was paid through the company "Trokley", whose headquarters are also in Panama. And that money ended up in the account from which the hotel was purchased, but in the form of a loan.
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