Armentel ex CEO suspected of stealing $500 million

YEREVAN, July 18. / ARKA /. New details of a criminal case opened against a Russian citizen Igor Klimko who served as CEO of ArmenTel, a subsidiary of Russia’s VimpelCom in Armenia until 2013 have emerged.

ArmenTel is the largest fixed-line and the second largest mobile operator in Armenia (trading as Beeline). Earlier it had emerged that Klimko has been wanted by Armenian law-enforcement bodies since February.

Artem Minaev, a representative of Vimpelcom group, told CNews that the case was opened at the request of ArmenTel after it revealed a loss of income and was declared by the Security Service of Armenia as defrauded party. At the same time Minaev stressed that ArmenTel has no claims to its former CEO.

According to Armenian media reports, when Klimko served as CEO of ArmenTel the company’s profits received from foreign telephone operators, about $500 million, were accumulated on an offshore company’s account. Because of that the budget of Armenia lost 14-15 billion drams ($37 million) in taxes.

According to Armenian media reports, at the request of Armenian law-enforcement authorities a former ArmenTel employee Ashot Poghosyan was detained in Belarus and is likely to be extradited soon to Armenia.

A source familiar with Klimko said  that after retiring from Vimpelcom Klimko worked for some time in Cambodia and is now in Russia ‘hiding from no one."

ArmenTel  is a subsidiary of VimpelCom. It provides fixed and mobile telephony services as well as high-speed Internet. ($ 1 - 406.97 drams). -0 –

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15:56 07/18/2014