By ANDREW OSBORN in Moscow
Nine gem-encrusted Faberge eggs worth more than US$100 million ($159 million) are at the centre of a bizarre legal row between Russia's third richest man and a disgruntled group of bank depositors.
The eggs, which once belonged to Russia's Romanov dynasty, were bought this year by Viktor Vekselberg, an oil and metals tycoon said to be worth US$5.2 billion($8.26 billion).
He bought them from the Malcolm Forbes foundation for a price "exceeding US$100 million" and in a patriotic flourish decided to bring them back to the motherland for the first time since the Russian revolution in 1917.
Vekselberg won plaudits at the time for his generosity despite the fact that he retained ownership of the eggs and had not given them to the state.
The eggs are currently on display in the Kremlin.
But a group of angry bank depositors said yesterday that Vekselberg owed them US$40 million ($65 million) and said they suspected that he bought the eggs - at least in part - with money he had stolen from them.
The allegations threaten to tarnish Vekselberg's unblemished credentials. The investors - who all had their money tied up in the now-bankrupt First City Bank - have launched legal proceedings against Vekselberg.
Their main claim is on the eggs; they have asked a Moscow court to seize the collection as a "guarantee" until they get their money back.
Armen Rushtuni, the main complainant, alleges that US$40 million was illegally siphoned off from First City Bank before it went bankrupt in April.
- INDEPENDENT
Bankrupt bank's victims cry foul over Faberge eggs
AdvertisementAdvertise with NZME.