11-08-2012, 04:59 PM
Time line of events
1997 - Yevgeny Chichvarkin, a 20-something mobile phone salesman, invests $2,500 and founds Evroset
Summer 2003 - Evroset files a complaint to the Southern Police District about one of its employees, Andrei Vlaskin, for reportedly stealing shipments of imported mobile phones and selling them on the market. Denis Yevsyukov, then an investigator, issues a search for Vlaskin, various sources say. Vlaskin testifies that he did in fact steal mobile phones from Evroset. On two occasions, Vlaskin orders assaults on a Evroset employee asked to look after Vlaskin.
Dec. 2003 - According to investigators, Vlaskin is detained by police in Tambov and brought to Moscow. Alexander Kurta, an officer of the Southern Police District, hands over Vlaskin to Evroset's security team who were waiting outside the precinct. They included Evroset vice president and head of security Boris Levin, and his employees, Alexei Olesik and Vladimir Ilyin. Vlaskin alleges he was held for two weeks in a Moscow apartment, chained to a radiator and occasionally beaten. But according to Chichvarkin's lawyer, Yuri Gervis, Vlaskin asked for an apartment and was provided one by Evroset.
Summer 2005 - A high-profile criminal probe curbs a widespread practice whereby Sheremetyevo customs officials would demand bribes for duty discounts and expedited documentation.
Summer 2005 - Law enforcement launches a criminal probe, accusing Evroset of importing contraband phones.
Fall 2005 - German Gref, then the Economic Development Minister, holds a meeting with leading mobile phone retailers. They go clean and start paying full duties on their cell phone imports, and Gref orders customs officials to provide documents in time. Costing up to $700 million a year (24 per cent of the import cost), this practice is more expensive, but more transparent. Chichvarkin's Evroset, in a bid to become more transparent and prepare for a future IPO, becomes one of the first companies to adopt it.
March 2006 - As part of the criminal probe against Evroset, officials from the Interior Ministry's K Department - which oversees crimes involving information technology - impound 167,500 Motorolas destined for Evroset stores at Sheremetyevo Airport. Chichvarkin would later allege that an official from the K department, Konstantin Machabeli, demanded $10 million to resolve the problem. But the mobile phones checked out - they were neither contraband nor fake.
July 2006 - According to Evroset sources cited by Newsweek, Motorola complained to the US State Department, and President George Bush brought up the issue with President Vladimir Putin at the July G8 summit. President Vladimir Putin ordered Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev and Gref to settle the problem. The criminal probe against Evroset continues, but a separate case is launched against officials of the Interior Ministry's K Department for illegally impounding the Motorola phones.
2007 - Vladimir Knyazev, an officer from the K Department, is fined 50,000 roubles. Knyazev would continue to work for the Interior Ministry, and in 2009 would become one of the key investigators working on the case against Chichvarkin.
Fall 2007 - Evroset signs an agreement with MTS, allowing MTS users to pay for their mobile charges at Evroset stores.
April 2008 - Reports appear that Chichvarkin is negotiating to sell Evroset to MTS. The reports are not officially confirmed until AFK Sistema chief Vladimir Yevtushenkov admits that MTS, which is part of his holding, is interested in buying the retail chain as part of a consortium of investors.
August 2008 - Investigators renew efforts in the 2005 contraband probe against Evroset. Andrei Vlaskin is now questioned as a witness in this case.
Sept. 2, 2008 - Masked men from the Prosecutor General's Office raid Evroset headquarters as part of the criminal probe. That day, Evroset's security department head, Boris Levin, is arrested on charges of kidnapping Andrei Vlaskin in 2003. The investigation against Chichvarkin on accusations of kidnapping begins.
Sept. 23, 2008 - Alexander Mamut agrees to purchase cash-strapped Evroset for $400 million. By that point, Evroset has accumulated $950 million in debt. Mamut then sells 49.9 per cent of the shares to Vimpelcom, which controls the Beeline service provider and which is MTS' main competitor.
Jan. 2009 - Chichvarkin is charged with extortion and organizing a kidnapping, along with Boris Levin. Tipped off by a friend who found out about his pending arrest, Chichvarkin is whisked off to Domodedovo Airport, lying down in the back seat of a car so that police, lying in wait, don't see him.
Feb. 2009 - Investigators from the Prosecutor General's Office, as part of their investigation against Chichvarkin, arrive at the Southern District Police Department looking for the 2003 case against Andrei Vlaskin. They cannot find what they are looking for, but Kommersant reports that investigators find several boxes containing criminal cases near garbage bins outside the precinct.
The criminal cases in the boxes involved charges of theft against Vlaskin and were marked as closed, but there was no documented confirmation of this, a police source told Rosbalt news agency.
April 1, 2009 - Evroset customer payment agreement with MTS expires. MTS, which claims Evroset failed to pay 1.1 billion roubles for previous mobile charges, is not satisfied that Evroset can pay back the debt and continue paying on time. Evroset continues to accept payment for MTS, while MTS warns it has stopped accepting payments through Evroset stores. The disagreement escalates into virulent PR attacks on both sides.
April 2009 - The Southern Police District department is investigated, while reports about the resignation of top officials, including Southern Police District chief Yury Ageyev and others, appear in news agencies on April 20 and April 22.
The night of April 26-27, 2009 - Major Denis Yevsyukov, head of the Tsaritsyno police precinct, goes on a shooting spree in a supermarket, killing two and wounding seven. While in custody, he is questioned about the Vlaskin investigation, but does not provide any evidence.
July 2009 - Police charge Alexander Kurte, a former police officer of the Southern Police District, with kidnapping Andrei Vlaskin.
Oct. 2009 - The Interior Ministry pledges to investigate claims by Chichvarkin that a Department K official, Konstantin Machabeli, tried to extort millions of dollars.
Dec. 24, 2009 - Medvedev announces a big reform of the Interior Ministry.
Dec. 28, 2009 - Yevsyukov's trial begins.
Jan. 2010 - Andrei Latysh, another Department K official wanted for impounding the Motorolas, turns himself in. An investigation is still pending.
Feb. 2010 - Yevsyukov is found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.
1997 - Yevgeny Chichvarkin, a 20-something mobile phone salesman, invests $2,500 and founds Evroset
Summer 2003 - Evroset files a complaint to the Southern Police District about one of its employees, Andrei Vlaskin, for reportedly stealing shipments of imported mobile phones and selling them on the market. Denis Yevsyukov, then an investigator, issues a search for Vlaskin, various sources say. Vlaskin testifies that he did in fact steal mobile phones from Evroset. On two occasions, Vlaskin orders assaults on a Evroset employee asked to look after Vlaskin.
Dec. 2003 - According to investigators, Vlaskin is detained by police in Tambov and brought to Moscow. Alexander Kurta, an officer of the Southern Police District, hands over Vlaskin to Evroset's security team who were waiting outside the precinct. They included Evroset vice president and head of security Boris Levin, and his employees, Alexei Olesik and Vladimir Ilyin. Vlaskin alleges he was held for two weeks in a Moscow apartment, chained to a radiator and occasionally beaten. But according to Chichvarkin's lawyer, Yuri Gervis, Vlaskin asked for an apartment and was provided one by Evroset.
Summer 2005 - A high-profile criminal probe curbs a widespread practice whereby Sheremetyevo customs officials would demand bribes for duty discounts and expedited documentation.
Summer 2005 - Law enforcement launches a criminal probe, accusing Evroset of importing contraband phones.
Fall 2005 - German Gref, then the Economic Development Minister, holds a meeting with leading mobile phone retailers. They go clean and start paying full duties on their cell phone imports, and Gref orders customs officials to provide documents in time. Costing up to $700 million a year (24 per cent of the import cost), this practice is more expensive, but more transparent. Chichvarkin's Evroset, in a bid to become more transparent and prepare for a future IPO, becomes one of the first companies to adopt it.
March 2006 - As part of the criminal probe against Evroset, officials from the Interior Ministry's K Department - which oversees crimes involving information technology - impound 167,500 Motorolas destined for Evroset stores at Sheremetyevo Airport. Chichvarkin would later allege that an official from the K department, Konstantin Machabeli, demanded $10 million to resolve the problem. But the mobile phones checked out - they were neither contraband nor fake.
July 2006 - According to Evroset sources cited by Newsweek, Motorola complained to the US State Department, and President George Bush brought up the issue with President Vladimir Putin at the July G8 summit. President Vladimir Putin ordered Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev and Gref to settle the problem. The criminal probe against Evroset continues, but a separate case is launched against officials of the Interior Ministry's K Department for illegally impounding the Motorola phones.
2007 - Vladimir Knyazev, an officer from the K Department, is fined 50,000 roubles. Knyazev would continue to work for the Interior Ministry, and in 2009 would become one of the key investigators working on the case against Chichvarkin.
Fall 2007 - Evroset signs an agreement with MTS, allowing MTS users to pay for their mobile charges at Evroset stores.
April 2008 - Reports appear that Chichvarkin is negotiating to sell Evroset to MTS. The reports are not officially confirmed until AFK Sistema chief Vladimir Yevtushenkov admits that MTS, which is part of his holding, is interested in buying the retail chain as part of a consortium of investors.
August 2008 - Investigators renew efforts in the 2005 contraband probe against Evroset. Andrei Vlaskin is now questioned as a witness in this case.
Sept. 2, 2008 - Masked men from the Prosecutor General's Office raid Evroset headquarters as part of the criminal probe. That day, Evroset's security department head, Boris Levin, is arrested on charges of kidnapping Andrei Vlaskin in 2003. The investigation against Chichvarkin on accusations of kidnapping begins.
Sept. 23, 2008 - Alexander Mamut agrees to purchase cash-strapped Evroset for $400 million. By that point, Evroset has accumulated $950 million in debt. Mamut then sells 49.9 per cent of the shares to Vimpelcom, which controls the Beeline service provider and which is MTS' main competitor.
Jan. 2009 - Chichvarkin is charged with extortion and organizing a kidnapping, along with Boris Levin. Tipped off by a friend who found out about his pending arrest, Chichvarkin is whisked off to Domodedovo Airport, lying down in the back seat of a car so that police, lying in wait, don't see him.
Feb. 2009 - Investigators from the Prosecutor General's Office, as part of their investigation against Chichvarkin, arrive at the Southern District Police Department looking for the 2003 case against Andrei Vlaskin. They cannot find what they are looking for, but Kommersant reports that investigators find several boxes containing criminal cases near garbage bins outside the precinct.
The criminal cases in the boxes involved charges of theft against Vlaskin and were marked as closed, but there was no documented confirmation of this, a police source told Rosbalt news agency.
April 1, 2009 - Evroset customer payment agreement with MTS expires. MTS, which claims Evroset failed to pay 1.1 billion roubles for previous mobile charges, is not satisfied that Evroset can pay back the debt and continue paying on time. Evroset continues to accept payment for MTS, while MTS warns it has stopped accepting payments through Evroset stores. The disagreement escalates into virulent PR attacks on both sides.
April 2009 - The Southern Police District department is investigated, while reports about the resignation of top officials, including Southern Police District chief Yury Ageyev and others, appear in news agencies on April 20 and April 22.
The night of April 26-27, 2009 - Major Denis Yevsyukov, head of the Tsaritsyno police precinct, goes on a shooting spree in a supermarket, killing two and wounding seven. While in custody, he is questioned about the Vlaskin investigation, but does not provide any evidence.
July 2009 - Police charge Alexander Kurte, a former police officer of the Southern Police District, with kidnapping Andrei Vlaskin.
Oct. 2009 - The Interior Ministry pledges to investigate claims by Chichvarkin that a Department K official, Konstantin Machabeli, tried to extort millions of dollars.
Dec. 24, 2009 - Medvedev announces a big reform of the Interior Ministry.
Dec. 28, 2009 - Yevsyukov's trial begins.
Jan. 2010 - Andrei Latysh, another Department K official wanted for impounding the Motorolas, turns himself in. An investigation is still pending.
Feb. 2010 - Yevsyukov is found guilty and sentenced to life in prison.
