Court arrests seven hotels of VS Energy group of Putin cronies 

Schemes write about it.

Thus, the seizure was imposed on Premier Palace Hotel, Premier Hotel Rus, Premier Hotel Lybid and Premier Hotel Slavutych in Kyiv, Premier Hotel Dnister in Lviv, Premier Hotel Odessa in Odesa and Premier Compass Hotel Oleksandriya in Olexandria, which are owned by VS Energy group.

In a court decision dated December 12, investigating judge Olesya Batryn partially granted the request of the Prosecutor General's Office and imposed seizure on authorized capital of a number of companies controlled by the Russian so-called Luzhniki group, as well as real estate in Ukraine.

"Namely, for 7 hotels from the Premier Hotels & Resorts chain in Kyiv, Lviv, Odesa and Oleksandria. According to the resolution, it is forbidden to alienate this property. In terms of establishing a ban on the use of this property, the judge did not satisfy the petition. In addition, a seizure was imposed on non-residential premises of trade and exhibition complex "Metrograd" and shopping center "Metropolis" in Kyiv", journalists note.

The petition stated that this property corresponds to characteristics "obtained as a result of the commission of a crime and/or income from such property, and the purpose of such seizure is to ensure storage of physical evidence and ensure special confiscation of property."

State Bureau of Investigation, under procedural leadership, is conducting a pre-trial investigation on several charges, in particular - appropriation of property and commission by "criminal organization "Luzhniki", represented by financial and industrial group VS Energy, of deliberate actions with the aim of changing borders of the territory or state border of Ukraine in accordance with the procedure established by Constitution of Ukraine, according to the previous conspiracy by a group of persons".

Thus, according to the investigation, VS Energy group is represented by three citizens of the Russian Federation: Aleksandr Babakov - deputy of the Russian State Duma, Mykhail Voevodin - according to the investigation, so-called thief in law nicknamed Misha Luzhnetsky and Yevheniy Giner - president of Moscow football club CSKA.

Giner, the Schemes add, is also a partner of the Russian state corporation Rostec. It is managed by former FSB officer Sergey Chemezov, Putin's old friend and crony.

Investigation materials state that Babakov, "being a political figure from pro-ruling United Russia party in Russia, using influence on the highest political leadership of Ukraine in the period 2001-2014, provided lobbying for interests of criminal group with the aim of acquiring assets by members of an illegal group."

Giner, in turn, "provided necessary measures to finance illegal activities of the group", and Voevodin organized "forced support for asset acquisition processes", according to the investigators.

According to the investigation, in the period 2017-2022, regional energy companies controlled by VS Energy "transferred more than UAH 1.65 billion to group's enterprises under fictitious transactions, after which part of the funds was legalized through the purchase of movable and immovable property," the Schemes wrote.

Babakov, Giner and Voevodin are included in the list of persons to whom personal sanctions have been applied, according to the decisions of the National Security and Defense Council.

In addition, Babakov is under EU and US sanctions. In 2014, he voted for the annexation of Crimea, where VS Energy group controls Sevastopol Oblenergo energy company.  And on October 3, 2022, he voted for the annexation of the Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions.