Russian court refuses to summon Rosneft CEO again to hearing

MOSCOW, Nov 28 (PRIME) -- The Zamoskvoretsky District Court of Moscow has decided not to summon Igor Sechin, CEO of oil major Rosneft, again to a court hearing to testify against former Economic Development Minister Alexei Ulyukayev under a U.S. $2 million bribery case, according to information obtained by PRIME in the court on Tuesday.

“To deny the prosecutor’s motion to disclose the testimony of Sechin due to objection of the defense,” a judge said, also denying a new motion of the defense to summon Sechin again to court.

“The court determined to reject the summon of the witness as the prosecution has finished to produce evidence, while the defense did not ensure the attendance of the witness.”

Ulyukayev, the first government official arrested on suspicions of corruption, allegedly received the $2 million bribe in November 2016 for a positive outlook on privatization of oil company Bashneft by Rosneft. Now, he can face 15 years in prison if his guilt is proved. He pleaded not guilty in August 2017 and said it was a setup organized by Sechin and the Federal Security Service.

Nikolai Klyon, a lawyer of Sechin, said previously that Sechin was unable to attend the hearings due to his tight schedule, but that he had already provided a satisfactory testimony to investigators before and had nothing to add.

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