Russia’s Investigative Committee has instituted criminal proceedings against alleged accomplices of member of LDPR faction in the State Duma Ashot Egiazaryan who is suspected of a large-scale scam to get shares of Evropark shopping mall on Roublevskoye highway.

The Investigative Committee has obtained evidence that Ashot Egiazaryan fraudulently acquired $51m worth 20% stake in Centurion Alliance company from Vitaly Smagin by having abused the power of attorney. The crime was allegedly committed by Ashot Egiazaryan, his brother Artyom Egiazaryan, director general of Centurion Alliance JSC Maksim Klochin, director general of Konk firm Vitaly Gogokhiya and «other unidentified persons». The case is instituted under Article 159.4 of the Criminal Code (large scale fraud).     

According to Russian Mafia-rumafia.com own information, the case against the Duma deputy himself consists of 2 episodes. The investigators believe that Yegiazaryan led a fraud scheme to get 550 million roubles from former deputy head of Russian Foundation for Federal Property Management (RFFI) and to get 20% of shares of Centurion Alliance (the company which owns Evropark shopping mall) from businessman Vitaly Smagin. Smagin claims Egiazaryan used the stake to guarantee the $87.5m loan in Deutsche Bank which the bank allocated for reconstruction of Moscow hotel. In 2010 Ministry of Internal Affairs opened criminal case against unidentified persons who allegedly stole this money from Moscow city government, an owner of the hotel.

The investigators has not told journalist about the accomplices until recently. Charges against new participants in the case were a surprise for the deputy’s lawyer Dmitry Barannikov: “I have not seen names of any people mentioned in the arraignment in the files in the case [of my defendant]”. He also said that the investigative actions into Egiazaryan's case had not been carried out for more than a month.

Currently absconding in the USA, Egiazaryan denies he is guilty and promises to sue Smagin for slander. Maksim Klochin earlier said: «Such moves from Smagin's side is nothing else but the attempt to raid the property».