Putin also stole a waterfall for his luxury holiday home

The OCCRP And the Russian-speaking newspaper, Medusa, received thousands of emails from two construction companies that revealed another luxury property of Vladimir Putin, showing amazing luxury.

The Russian dictator also stole his own waterfall for his “hunting house” of several buildings.

Watchman In accordance with Article There are showers that each cost $10,800 (about $4 million) and the roses cost $4,600 ($1.75 million). Then there are the $110,000 (about $42 million) Fior di Bosco marble floors and the indoor pool, where an ornate waterfall flows from the first floor.

Six years ago, an independent Russian television channel, Dozhgy, reported that, deep in the forests of the Karelia region in northern Russia, the locals were widely talking about a vacation home called “hunting hut” by architects as “Putin’s dacha”.

While the Russian president, according to an analysis by the British government, officially took only a few assets into his name, including a small apartment in Saint Petersburg, two Soviet cars from the 1950s, a trailer and a small garage. Until then, the Dozhgy newspaper reported that Putin used to relax in these luxury properties.

Part of the house is covered with a grass roof to fool sky stalkers, but it also has a helipad. According to floor plans, blueprints, and interior design plans, construction began on one of the six-bedroom homes last year, all decorated in semiprecious stones, such as lapis lazuli, a dark blue stone that some attribute to its healing power. A light crystal called labradorite is believed to relieve anxiety and stress.

According to documents in leaked emails, high-end Russian interior design agency FullHouseDesign led the project, although the company’s owner told OCCRP he had no recollection of any involvement.

There is also a second new building in the surrounding area, which the Russian Land Office described as a ‘barn’ in 2018, but leaks suggest it is a modern two-story building that looks like a huge entertainment venue, and open space for more. from 200 m²With dining area. A glass partition separates the large dining room from the well-equipped professional kitchen. It also has its own brewery with an Austrian brewing system worth 345,000 euros (about 140 million fort), which can produce 47 liters of beer per day, and on the second floor there is a cafe overlooking Lake Ladoga.

Last year, construction also began on a separate two-storey building that includes additional kitchen utensils as well as fish, meat and vegetable storage. There are four modest bedrooms with rollaway beds for the staff. There is also a cattle farm nearby where Wagyu is produced according to a local source of Japanese cattle.

In the “barn” there are two small ponds, but the path also leads to the natural waterfall of Lake Ladoga, where a cozy pavilion provides shelter from the sun.

The waterfall used to be a popular tourist attraction, but now it is completely closed to the public. According to the document, public construction work is estimated at 187 million rubles (1.3 billion forints).

Putin denies that he will be the real beneficiary of the complex. Security guards manning the fence are known to sell lake-caught trout to locals when the chiefs are away, but they didn’t comment when asked who they work. (Locals act as guards only if the site is empty when distinguished guests arrive, the guards will be replaced by the Federal Defense Service.)

There is nothing on paper to suggest that the property could be linked directly to Putin. Fisherman’s Hut itself is registered with a company called Prime, which is owned by the Support of Entrepreneurial Initatives, a non-profit organization founded by Yuri Kovalchuk and his son Boris. Kovalchuk, a major ally under Western sanctions, is a close ally of Putin and a major shareholder in Bank Rozia, dubbed “Putin’s Bank” because of its mandate in the Kremlin. The bank is subject to US, EU and UK sanctions.

The surrounding areas are also owned by companies belonging to Kovalchuk and another businessman who has been under US sanctions since 2016. It appears that representatives of companies owned by Kovalchuk and Dedov use a common email domain name (LLCInvest.ru) operated by a web service provider closely linked to the Bank of Russia. The actual construction of the complex was directed by employees of a non-profit organization, Reviving Maritime Traditions, with at least one company using this domain name.

The Guardian, OCCRP and Medusa revealed this week that LLCInvest’s email address has been linked to several other luxury properties, yachts and vineyards, which it allegedly acquired for Putin’s use. None of the owners or founders of the partners and nonprofit organizations responded to comment. The purpose of the shared email service and the motivation behind the apparent cooperation in personnel and logistics are also unclear. “The president of the Russian Federation has nothing to do with the things and organizations you mentioned,” a Kremlin spokesman said.

Putin has been accused for two decades of amassing vast fortunes, luxury real estate and real estate through the Strowmans, as evidenced by leaks about the assets of those close to him, such as the Pandora Papers revelations. (guardian)