Everything is clear, but nothing is lucid in raider attack cases

Merchant Outpost Company expresses its surprise at the fact that some of the state institutions in Moldova try to make the situation tense following the appropriation of a 28% holing in Moldova Agroinbank (MAIB). On the other hand, the European investors that became victims continue to provide evidence that the raider attacks took place, Info-Prim Neo reports. “The transaction was absolutely legal. Contracts were signed with former shareholders, but they did not transfer the shares on time and thus the company decided to appeal to the court in Saint Petersburg. This court’s decision was later sent to the Bender Court of Appeals (based in Causeni town),” Nicolai Rogovoi, who presented himself as the lawyer representing the interests of Merchant Outpost Company, told a news conference on September 14. Another person representing the company’s interests Oleg Vremenko said the transmission of the decision passed by the Saint Petersburg court to the Bender Court of Appeals was ordinary and legal as Moldova signed a number of international conventions in this respect. But the Court of Appeals’ decision was challenged in a higher court. “We will try to provide arguments and proofs in today’s hearing of the Court of Justice, but no unfounded accusations should be made against the company until the court passes judgment,” said Vremenko. Rogovoi and Vremenko avoided giving exact answers to journalists’ questions as to who is the owner of the company, why the arbitrators of the court in Saint Petersburg who passed the decision could be found with difficulty and why the shares bought by Outpost Company were later transferred to Creative Production, Inc. They said the company should not be accused of raider attack and attack on the banks’ security as the money did not leave MAIB, but remained in Moldova. According to them, it is a lawsuit between economic entities. Lawyer Pavel Zamfir, who said he represents Merchant Outpost Company in court from September 14, said the suit is studied in the courts of law of Moldova, while on October 5 will be examined by Russian courts. “We should wait for the courts to pronounce to see whose position is just according to the national and international legislation,” he said. In a communiqué issued by the lawyers of the European investors deprived of shares, it is said that the insistence by which Merchant Outpost justifies itself before the press shows the 28% of the shares were indeed stolen by a series of disputes and suits. They say the originals of a number of documents, including the contracts mentioned by the company on the basis of which the shares were taken over, could not be found. The only document found was a photocopy of the arbitral award issued by the court of Saint Petersburg, which was presented to the Court of Justice of Moldova.