The attack on Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov in Vilnius was allegedly ordered by another Russian oppositionist, businessman Leonid Nevzlin, the investigation by the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) has revealed.
Volkov, a close ally of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died in an Arctic prison, was attacked in his car outside his home in the Lithuanian capital late on March 12.
“Leonid Nevzlin ordered the beating and kidnapping of Volkov,” the FBK said.
The attacker broke the car’s window, sprayed tear gas, and started hitting Volkov with a meat mallet, breaking his arm and causing leg injuries. Poland said it arrested three suspects in connection with the assault.
According to the FBK, Nevzlin was not satisfied with the result of the attack on Volkov and did not pay the attackers the promised 250,000 dollars.
Nevzlin, the former vice-president of the oil company Yukos, was also allegedly involved in organising the attack on FBK’s head Ivan Zhdanov in Geneva and Alexandra Petrachkova, wife of economist Maxim Mironov, in Argentina.
According to the investigation, this was revealed by photographs and audio recordings of Nevzlin’s correspondence. The FBK and its partners verified the authenticity of the video and audio recordings, as well as messages, allegedly provided by a source claiming to be Andrei Matus, who works closely with former Yukos executives Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Nevzlin.
The correspondence made public was between Nevzlin and a man whose details match those of Anatoly Blinov, a lawyer living in Poland. It was to him that the oppositionist allegedly entrusted the organisation of the attacks.
The initial plan, according to the correspondence, was to kidnap Volkov in Lithuania, transport him through Riga to Russia, and hand him over to the FSB.
The FBK believes that “stupid senseless hatred” combined with “political competition” may have driven the attack on Volkov.
Nevzlin himself denied any involvement in the attacks.
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