When Russian Officials ‘Nightmare’ Your Business, You Can Lose Everything—Even Your Life
Ruslan Telkov outside the prison where he was detained for “violating the authors’ rights of leopards” by using their skin pattern in the furniture upholstery he manufactured.
Photographer: Misha Friedman for Bloomberg
Late last year, Moscow news media reported that an armed man had taken hostages at a candy factory in the city and killed a guard. The alleged shooter turned out to be a former owner of the factory, still fighting for control of it. He told Business FM before his arrest that he was resisting a raid staged by law enforcement agents to seize the business. In court he said he had killed the guard in self-defense. He is now in remand prison, or pre-trial detention, pending the results of an investigation.
His claims struck a chord in Russia, where innumerable business owners, company managers, lawyers and other professionals have spent years in detention and lost their assets, their health or even their lives to a widespread culture of prosecutorial excess.