The career of the fraudster Alibek Issaev, wanted by the Russian Federation for murder and terrorism, is coming to an end. Last week, three villas in Abu Dhabi, including the one he resides in, were seized. This property will be confiscated and sold to repay Issaev’s debt to Ilya Kligman.
However, these are not the main losses for Issaev. His project “Venom”, on which significant hopes were pinned, is destined to fail. Additionally, during the past week, the financial regulator of the UAE initiated an investigation to determine whether Issaev is the ultimate beneficiary of the project.
Issaev reassured “investors” that Venom is immune, as he claimed he had no legal ties to it and that the companies could not be seized to satisfy Kligman’s claims. Well, the scheme of owning and managing the project’s companies was ingeniously constructed.
Half of the companies were registered under Alibek’s long-time driver, Hasan, while the other half were under the name of the “respectable nominee” from Germany, Dr. Kai Uwe Steck, whose connection to Issaev has also been established by law enforcement.
The project’s personnel, in turn, have long been deeply linked to Issaev. While the financial regulator needs some time to understand the complex situation from Kligman’s submission and several independent sources of information, the UAE Prosecutor’s Office already has a clear picture. Issaev’s partners in Germany will also have to explain money laundering activities involving a fugitive Interpol-listed terrorist and fraudster from Russia in their home country.