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Russian opposition lawmaker put on international wanted list — court

Ilya Ponomarev is accused of embezzling roughly $380,000

Ilya Ponomarev ITAR-TASS/Yevgeny Kurskov

Ilya Ponomarev

© ITAR-TASS/Yevgeny Kurskov

MOSCOW, July 17. /TASS/. Russian State Duma deputy Ilya Ponomarev accused of complicity in embezzling roughly $380,000, has been put on an international wanted list, Moscow Basmanny court said on Friday.

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On April 7, the State Duma deprived Ponomarev of deputy immunity. In June, Prosecutor General’s Office launched a criminal case against Ponomarev.

According to investigators, Ilya Ponomarev is accused of complicity in embezzling 22 million rubles ($383,300) that he received from the Skolkovo Foundation.

In April 2013, the Skolkovo Foundation filed a lawsuit against Ponomarev, who was formally a member of A Just Russia Party’s caucus in the State Duma. The lawsuit followed his refusal to file a financial report on the lectures, which he was support to give under a contract with the foundation and which he received $750,000 for.

Ponomarev said in a telephone interview with TASS last September he was staying abroad but he was ready to return unless the authorities imposed foreign travel restrictions on him. At the time of the conversation, he had plans to stay in Asian countries and to go to the US.

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