09.09.2009
On the basis of the appeals of the management of Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy (MinAtom) (out. №03-294 of 05.02.1996) and Firm YACONTO LLP (out. №5-2-PYA of 05.02.1996) to the chief or Rostov region MOI (police) Mikhail Fetisov, the DAEC SCM of Rostov regional police instructed AUDI LLP (Rostov-on-Don city), an auditor and accounting company, to verify the production and economic activity of the so-called “Manufacture №1” of Atommash OJSC and APP-1 LLP for the period from 01.06.1993 to 31.12.1995. The APP-1 LLP was founded by individuals from the executive management of Atommash OJSC. The Deputy of the Legislative Assembly of Rostov region (Director of economy and planning of Atommash OJSC) Valentin Miroshnikov wrote to the Chairman of the Russian State Duma Gennadiy Seleznev (out. №ВМ-025 от 18.07.1996) regarding the fate of Russian nuclear engineering flagship Atommash OJSC, and received a reply from the Deputy General Prosecutor of Russia Vladimir Davydov (out. №7/3-1-276-96 of 25.12.1996).
The reply of the General Prosecutor’s office indicated, inter alia, that the DAEC (department for economic crimes) of Rostov regional police inspected several aspects of the production and economic activity of “Manufacture №1” of Atommash OJSC and APP-1 LLP. This inspection found that APP-1 LLP was manufacturing goods and selling them to a Bulgarian company “Eurotour-GT” and a joint Russian-Bulgarian company “ETAM Ltd” with a significant discount, which inflicted 165 billion rubles worth of damage to Atommash. All materials of the inspection of 29.11.1996 were transferred to the department of investigation and crime detection of Rostov regional police, where they were being reviewed. Vladimir Davydov also mentions that the execution of this review was controlled by the General Prosecutor’s office of Russia. However, the law enforcement agencies never took any action to investigate this crime, which dealt colossal material damage to Atommash itself, to its shareholders and the State. On contrary, they personally participated in covering up of the intentional bankruptcy, illegal discounting and sale of the property of Atommash OJSC for a pittance, with the subsequent liquidation of the latter in the interests of the organized criminal group (OCG) of corrupt officials.
In particular, the very same law enforcement authorities covered up the sale abroad of 1500 tons of high-quality stainless steel for nuclear power plants from the strategic reserves, at $60-80 U.S. dollars per ton, which was several dozen times lower than its real price on the world markets. There were plenty of such examples. Therefore, the thorough, large-scale investigation of the premeditated bankruptcy of Atommash OJSC should be conducted by the Investigative Committee of the General Prosecutor’s Offica of Russia, excluding any participation of officials from law enforcement agencies and courts controlled by Governor of Rostov region Vladimir Chub and his “inner circle”. The following people organized and carried out the bankruptcy of Atommash OJSC: General Director of Atommash OJSC Alexey Golovin; First Vice President (and, since, 1996, CEO / General Director) of Energomashcorporatsiya OJSC (Moscow) Alexander Stepanov; Head of Federal Office for Insolvency (Bankruptcy) Proceedings for Rostov region Tatyana Gramotenko; Governor of Rostov region Vladimir Chub and other OCG participants on federal and regional levels, linked by mutual responsibility. The premeditated bankruptcy of Atommash was covered up by several team members of Russian “reformers”.
In 1994, earmarked loans allocated from the federal budget exclusively to support the production activity of Atommash, have been deliberately redirected to commercial entities. Through complex schemes and multi-path combinations, involving different legal entities, these funds returned to Atommash OJSC on their behalf, but this time in the form of commercial loans at exorbitant interest rates. That provided a rapid growth in accounts payable of Atommash OJSC before the “intermediary lenders”, pushing the Russian nuclear industry giant towards the intentional, artificial bankruptcy. Some of the companies involved in those schemes were: CB “Yauza-bank”, “Veles” CJSC, Concern “Sibyr-Zoloto” CJSC, CB “Megastarbank”, VB CB “Doninvest” and other dishonest banks and enterprises.
Being intentionally devaluated to absolute minimum, liquid assets of Atommash OJSC also played a role in criminal schemes. Besides, the goods manufactured by different LLPs on the production areas of Atommash OJSC, has been sold, dealing material damage to Atommash. That became possible since its core liquid assets, including workshops and unique technical equipment, were illegally leased to various LLPs on inherently unprofitable and disadvantageous to Atommash conditions. Strategic reserves, raw materials, equipment and finished goods were transferred to those LLPs at repeatedly discounted prices, in particular, due to hyperinflation. These LLPs have been owned by individuals from the executive management of Atommash, while Atommash itself, as a company, wasn’t even among their co-owners. Main expenses and losses of LLPs were shifted onto Atommash OJSC. Not just the property of Atommash, but also its vast territories, including agricultural enterprises and their land, were expropriated by OCG members.
If we compared the amount of losses, deliberately dealt to Atommash by OCG members, to the total amount of Atommash’s artificially created debt to “dummy lenders”, we find out that Atommash OJSC should not have been indebted at all. Aiming to capture liquid assets of Atommash OJSC through its bankruptcy and liquidation, OCG members actively used corrupt officials of federal and regional level. Therefore, in a gross violation of the Law, the state-owned 30% share and the “golden share” of Atommash OJSC have been used solely in the interests of the OCG members, anti-state activities of which were fully contrary to the interests of the State itself, of Atommash and tens of thousands of its shareholders. It’s not by accident that, after the "triumphal" external management of Atommash OJSC carried out by the bankruptcy referee Alexander Stepanov, the bankruptcy trustee assigned to the Russian nuclear industry giant was a mean, deceitful and cowardly Sergey Chesskiy, who simultaneously was the bankruptcy referee – and, subsequently, bankruptcy trustee – of the defense industry company Salut JSC (Volgodonsk, Rostov region). Chesskiy's appointment was made by the Arbitration Court of Rostov region on 11.11.1997, and was actively lobbied by the Head of FDSN of Rostov region Tatyana Gramotenko. The bankruptcy of these companies, both very significant to Russia, was carried out by the same OCG members, who covered criminal activities of Stepanov and Chesskiy.
Seizure, bankruptcy and liquidation of Atommash OJSC dealt colossal damage to the State, while OCG members received comparatively small profits – nothing like what they expected when they sold its assets for a song. Having illegally established EMK-Atommash JSC on Atommash's remaining premises, OCG members hoped to re-sell this new company to foreign investors or enjoy easy revenues from its production activities. None of those plans came to fruition. Major loans issued to EMK-Atommash JSC didn’t help its “dummy owner” Alexander Stepanov. Inability to work on world markets and lack of large profitable orders in Russia has led EMK-Atommash JSC to critical financial and economic situation.
Apparently fearing persecution and criminal liability for the deliberate bankruptcy of Atommash OJSC, Stepanov and his accomplices and patrons decided to sell EMK-Atommash JSC to the State on terms beneficial for the said group. In order to accomplish this, officials from state authorities and certain “intermediaries” were confidentially involved, offering “assistance” in the re-selling of EMK-Atommash JSC to the State for colossal amounts and with enormous benefits to the “parties concerned”. Pursuing more profit, the members of the “reformer team” of 1990-s, the inner circle of the currently ruling “team from St. Petersburg” are ready to help Alexander Stepanov, the “dummy owner” of EMK-Atommash OJSC, with lobbying this criminal scheme through the members of the Russian Government, ignoring the fact that it would deal huge damage to the State.
Understanding that retribution is impending, the “Rostov celestial” Vladimir Chub dreams of dissociating from his OCG accomplice Stepanov while he’s still being covered up. The times change and it gets harder and harder to preserve assets of questionable origin, including those obtained by Vladimir Chub outside Rostov region. If Chub’s property and facts of criminal activity during his “reign” as a “feudal prince” from 1991 till present were exposed to the public, he wouldn’t be able to rely on the protection of Vladimir Putin’s or Dmitry Medvedev’s “inner circle”, unless he is ready to give out all his fortune in return. It’s not by chance that his team members run from him like rats from a sinking ship.
Appetites of the “young sharks” in the power authorities are great; the “Rostov celestial” will be robbed to the bone in exchange for the “indulgence” for the crimes he committed during his “reign”. But the “younger generation” should also remember that, in the end, everyone would be held liable to the state and society. If they don’t want to find themselves on a dock together with OCG members, they should know better than helping certain people. In today’s world it’s easy to identify true owners of property and impersonal accounts. Whatever the supreme leadership of the State promises to their accomplices, their crimes will inevitably be uncovered, as all secrets become clear, and “words pay no debts”. Whether a thorough investigation of the premeditated bankruptcy of Atommash OJSC will be conducted or not, with respective consequences, is fully on the conscience of the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev as the “Guarantor of the Constitution”.