Reported by: Lukas I. Alpert

Aluminum tycoon Oleg Deripaska, a Russian oligarch with close ties to Vladimir Putin, has been indicted for allegedly evading U.S. sanctions through hidden financial transactions, including sending people flowers and arranging for his girlfriend to give birth to his child in America. 

Deripaska, 52, who owns a majority stake in United Co. Rusal PLC , one of the world’s largest aluminum producers, was placed on the U.S. sanctions list in 2018 along with the conglomerate he controls, Basic Element Ltd. That barred him from doing any business in the U.S. 

The sanctions were tightened earlier this year, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, after Rusal was removed in January 2019 from the sanctions list by the Treasury Department under then-President Donald Trump. 

“Shell companies and webs of lies will not shield Deripaska and his cronies from American law enforcement, nor will they protect others who support the Putin regime,” said Deputy U.S. Attorney General Lisa Monaco. 

Deripaska has been among Russia’s wealthiest men for decades, amassing his fortune beginning in the 1990s. He has long had close ties to Putin and been investigated around the world for money laundering, extortion and racketeering. He has denied the allegations.

Read full report: https://www.morningstar.com/news/marketwatch/20221001288/highly-sanctioned-russian-oligarch-with-close-ties-to-putin-indicted-for-sending-flowers-arranging-for-child-to-be-born-in-the-us