Scandal in “Yerevan-Plaza”

26/07/2011

The Russian Security Federal Services have made a large operation in the companies of the owner of Yerevan-Plaza in Moscow and found documents proving the participation of Russian officials in financial machinations.

The operation was done in connection with the violations during the construction of the complex. The security services have discovered a whole chain of machinations. It turned out that the construction was sponsored by the former head of the South district of the capital city Yuori Bulanov, who is imprisoned, and with the help of the accounting department of the complex the officials from Moscow did money laundering.

The Life News agency informs that their sources of information have confirmed the fact that the complex had been built with many violations and could collapse on the underground station at any time. In places where there is an underground tunnel construction should have the allowed level of height and norms, otherwise the ground may not resist and may fall down. The area of the trade complex exceeds this norm with 10,000 square meters. In addition, the complex has partially taken another area that does not belong to it.

The security officers checked-up the office of Stinkom-Group director Genadi Stepanyan on Letnikovski street and found a list of law-enforcement bodies’ officials, who had been sponsored by the management of the complex to back the construction.

The security services have also discovered a number of government members from Moscow, who had done money laundering with the help of the center. The millions were grabbed through inter-connected companies and transferred through China.

The Life News also informs that the criminal case has been launched under the article of embezzling large amounts of money. Currently the amount of the loss is about one million dollars but the amount may even grow.

The head of the juridical department of the complex Olga Kuryavceva announced that no investigation works had been done in either of the offices of Yerevan-Plaza. “Our head office is ST-Development. We don’t have any offices on Letnikovski street,” said Kuryavceva.

The representatives of Stinkom company have already announced that they do not have any employee with Stepanyan surname. However, according to the information of SPARK-Interfax, in their database the name of Genadi Shagori Stepanyan is mentioned as the head of Stinkom Group, a group of five companies (including the Stinkom Service).
 
According to the Life News, the management company of Yerevan Plaza in fact is ST-Development, which belongs to Shavla Chngrinski. According to the information of tert.am, Tashir group is one of the owners of this company too. The web site writes that during the opening ceremony the mayors of Moscow of those times, Yuri Luzhkov and ervand Zakharyan, were present and the project had been implemented by Tashir Group and Stinko Group. The tert.am informs that against the decision of Moscow municipality to provide this area with 40 thousand square meters the municipality of Yerevan provided an area in front of the city hall building, where the House of Moscow was built.

We tried to all Armenian businessman from Moscow Genadi Stepanyan to ask for information, but he did not answer the calls. We also contacted with Tashir group and received the following answer: “We have to remind you that it is not the first time that Armenian media is spreading misinformation where they mention the name of Tashir Group’s president Samvel Karapetyan. Even if you look at the information published in the Russian Lifenews.ru site, you will see that even they have posted misinformation in the text they took from this Russian site and published in their site. You can’t see that information in the Russian web site. It is clear that those who spread that information have the goal to harm the reputation of Tashir Group and its president Samvel Karapetyan. Tashir Group is a developed and sustainable company in Russia and such cheap publications cannot harm its reputation.”