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Court grants Samara region's damages suit vs Berezovsky

Berezovsky has lived in Great Britain in the past few years

MOSCOW, April 4 (Itar-Tass) — Moscow's Simonovsky court has granted Samara region's one-billion-rouble damages suite against businessman Boris Berezovsky and his former partner Yuli Dubov, Samara region's representative Sergei Popov told reporters on Wednesday.

"The court fully granted the action, in which the regional authorities demanded that Berezovsky and Dubov pay more than 997 million roubles. The action was filed over the damages incurred when Berezovsky was head of LogoVAZ.

The Moscow region's Krasnogorsk court passed a verdict for former chairman of LogoVAZ board Boris Berezovsky and the company's director general Yuli Dubov in June 2009. Both were found guilty of fraud and money laundering.

The investigator said Berezovsky had used his personal relations with the AVTOVAZ administration and arranged preparations for and concluded a contract in 2004, under which AVTOVAZ had to supply 20,000 cars to LogoVAZ. Contrary to the terms of the contract, the fraudsters did not pay anything to AVTOVAZ for the supplied 5,560 cars, and used 60 billions of non-denominated roubles at their discretion.

The court sentenced Berezovsky in absentia to 13 years in jail, and Dubov to 9 years in general regime penitentiary.

Berezovsky has lived in Great Britain in the past few years. The British authorities turned down Russia's request to extradite him. Dubov is staying abroad, too.

Meanwhile, Samara region representative Sergei Popov said the regional authorities might ask Great Britain to exact the one-billion-roubles from Berezovsky and his former partner Dubov as compensation for damage.

"We'll wait for the court's ruling to come into effect and will act towards its implementation. Perhaps, we’ll ask /the authorities/ at the place of the defendants' residence, where their property is located," Popov said.