Draft:Monacogate

Monacogate refers to the scandal involving the arrest and subsequent investigation into Russian oligarch Dmitry Rybolovlev on allegations of bribery and corruption involving Monegasque public officials. First dubbed "Monacogate" (a portmanteau of Monaco and Watergate) in 2017 by the French newspaper Le Monde, the controversy centered around accusations that Rybolovlev orchestrated the arrest of art dealer Yves Bouvier by allegedly bribing police officers, government officials, and influential figures in Monaco.

Rybolovlev's arrival in Monaco

Biography

Dmitry Rybolovlev is a Russian oligarch who rose to prominence following the collapse of the Soviet Union. Originally trained as a cardiologist, he transitioned to financial services, quickly amassing significant wealth by investigating in various companies which dealt in natural resources like potash.

In 1995, Rybolovlev became chairman and majority shareholder of the Russian fertilizer group, Uralkali. In 2010, Rybolovlev sold off significant stakes in Uralkali to three Kremlin-linked oligarchs for $6.5 billion and relocated to the West, establishing a primary residence in Cyprus.

Assets in Monaco

In 2010, Rybolovlev reportedly acquired the "La Belle Epoque" penthouse in Montecarlo $400 million. The following year, he acquired a 67% stake in the football club AS Monaco. Since then, Rybolovlev has been a permanent resident of Monaco.

Following the acquisition, Rybolovlev reportedly became close with Prince Albert II, who regularly attended AS Monaco games.

Yves Bouvier's arrest

In 2003, Rybolovlev began building one of the "most important private art collections in modern times", obtaining 38 artworks from Yves Bouvier. The collection includes paintings by Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Leonardo da Vinci, Paul Gaugin, among other masters, which were later sold by Rybolovlev for significant profit.

In 2015, Rybolovlev accused the art dealer of having defrauded him of $1.1 billion by charging markups on these artworks over 11 years. Specifically, the Russian billionaire's lawyers accused Bouvier of having misrepresented his role in obtaining 38 artworks for $2 billion and having thus defrauded Rybolovlev to the tune of a little more than $1 billion using offshore companies to disguise his gains. Rybolovlev pursued legal action in multiple jurisdictions. Ultimately, Rybolovlev's cases against Bouvier in Singapore, Hong Kong, New York, Monaco, and Geneva were discontinued by the courts.

In December 2023 the last criminal investigation into Bouvier was closed, with the Geneva Prosecutor's Office stating that it did not find "any evidence allowing sufficient suspicion to be raised" against Bouvier. Rybolovlev also lost the case against Sotheby's in a legal dispute where he accused the auction house of enabling Bouvier to defraud him in the sale of Leonardo da Vinci's Salvator Mundi. A jury found in favor of Sotheby's, rejecting Rybolovlev's allegations.

Arrest

As part of the legal actions taken by the Russian oligarch against the art dealer, Rybolovlev's lawyer Tatiana Bersheda filed a criminal complaint against Bouvier for fraud in Monaco in January, 2015. This triggered the launch of a criminal investigation against Bouvier in the principality. In February 2015, Bouvier was arrested by Monegasque police and released several days later on €10 million bail.

The criminal investigation into Bouvier came to a close in 2019 after the Monaco Court of Appeals dismissed all charges. The appellate judge state that "all investigations were conducted in a biased and unfair way without the defendant being in a position to retrospectively redress the serious anomalies that permanently compromised the balance of rights of the parties."

The criminal investigation against Bouvier was ended in 2019 after the Monaco Court of Appeals dismissed all charges against him. The appellate judge stated that "all investigations were conducted in a biased and unfair way without the defendant being in a position to retrospectively redress these serious anomalies that permanently compromised the balance of rights of the parties. During the investigation into Bouvier, Tania Rappo, Bouvier's associate, lodged a criminal complaint against Tetiana Bersheda, Rybolovlev's lawyer, alleging privacy violation after Bersheda submitted a private recording of Rappo to Monegasque investigators.

In February 2016, Bersheda was indicted and investigating judge Edouard Levrault appointed an expert to analyse the contents of her phone. Bersheda's phone revealed that Rybolovlev arranged substantial inducements to various other members of the Monegasque establishment, including the judiciary, law enforcement, and members of government, to have Bouvier arrested and investigated as part of his dispute with the art dealer.

Bersheda's phone showed that Bersheda and Rybolovlev were in close contact with several Monegasque police officers in charge of the investigation into Bouvier. Bersheda arranged meetings between Rybolovlev, Monaco Police Superintendent Christophe Haget and Chief Inspector Frédéric Fusari in January and February 2015, warning them of Bouvier's arrival. The messages show that Rybolovlev requested direct updates fro the officers and that Haget assured Bersheda of efforts to prolong Bouvier's custody. Fusari also communicated with Bersheda regarding free tickets to an AS Monaco match, while he was overseeing the investigation into Bouvier.

Bersheda also shared correspondence with Philippe Narmino, then Minister of Justice, and his wife Christine, along with other high-profile members of Monaco's government. Three days before the arrest of Bouvier, Rybolovlev arranged a weekend skiing holiday for the Narminos in his chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland, including a round-trip flight in a private helicopter.

Gérard Cohen, HSBC's managing director in Monaco, was also invited to Rybolovlev's chalet. HSBC Monaco was the bank used by Tania Rappo, Bouvier's associate in Monaco. An official document dated February 17, presented by HSBC to police investigators erroneously showed that Rappo and Bouvier held a joint account. This was seen by police as evidence of illicit transactions and was used as a pretext for Bouvier's arrest in Monaco. Bouvier claimed the document had been falsified; HSBC later confirmed that it had been the result of a clerical error.

Examples of gifts to influential figures in Monaco

The probe into Rybolovlev and Bersheda revealed that Rybolovlev's associates used gifts and perks to gain access and favour with influential figures in Monaco. The investigation uncovered question practices involving the AS Monaco football club, including the widespread distribution of free tickets to government officials and police chiefs. These were seen as a means to curry favor and build relationships.

Between 2011 and 2013, Tetiana Bersheda coordinated the distribution of wine, champagne, and chocolates to several recipients, including football officials and Prince Albert II. Around the time of the investigation against Bouvier, Rybolovlev purportedly also presented gifts to Prime Minister Michel Roger, Interior Minister Paul Masseron, Finance Minister Marco Piccinini, and Minister of Social Affairs, Stéphane Valeri.

Investigation into and arrest of Rybolovlev

In September 2017, following the investigation into Bersheda's phone and the evidence of undue influence on Monaco's government by Rybolovlev, the General Public Prosecutor's Office of Monaco initiated a judicial investigation into Rybolovlev and Bersheda for alleged active and passive influence peddling, as well as acts of corruption, linked to Bouvier's arrest.

In November 2018, the Monaco Public Prosecutor launched a criminal investigation into Rybolovlev and his lawyer Tetiana Bersheda for corruption, influence peddling, breaches of legal procedures, and privacy violations. The investigation, which also involved a search of Rybolovlev's Monaco penthouse, also implicated Justice Minister Narmino's family members.

In February 2021, Rybolovlev faced a criminal probe in Switzerland for potentially orchestrating Bouvier's arrest. According to Swiss authorities, this investigation, under Article 271 of the Swiss Criminal Code, focused on whether Rybolovlev used false pretences to coordinate the extradition of Bouvier. The investigation was initiated following a report filed by Bouvier in 2017, although he has clarified that he "was not a party to this case."

Investigations into Monegasque officials

In November 2018, a corruption investigation was also launched against Philippe Narmino, who had previously resigned as justice minister in September 2017. Narmino cited personal allegations and attacks against judicial institutions as reasons for his resignation.

Since then, several other Monegasque officials have been charged with influence peddling, corruption, and violation of privacy, including Minister of the Interior Paul Masseron, Attorney General Jean Pierre Dreno, Director of Public Security Régis Asso, Christophe Haget, and Fusari.

Dismissal of investigations against Bouvier

In December 2019, the Council Chamber of the Monaco Court of Appeal dismissed the case of fraud and complicity in money laundering against Bouvier. In response to the ruling, Franck Michel, Bouvier's lawyer, said that "everything was done to artificially create a jurisdiction in Monaco; Mr. Rybolovlev wanted the trail here because he thought he would win."

In June 2020, Monaco's Court of Revision upheld the Court of Appeal's ruling and dismissed the entire investigation into Bouvier, on the grounds that it was "tainted." In December 2023, the Geneva Public Prosecutor's Office closed the criminal investigation against Bouvier, citing that they did not find any evidence allowing sufficient suspicion to be raised against him.

Alleged corruption of French Ministry of Defence

In August 2020, it was reported that Sacha Mandel, an advisor to the minister of defence during François Hollande's presidency, was also offering his services to Rybolovlev. From April to June 2015, while still fulfilling his duties at the Ministry of Defence, Mandel worked with Rybolovlev to leak information on Bouvier. In July 2015, Mandel listed Rybolovlev as one of his agency's clients.

Controversy over dismissal of Judge Edouard Levrault

In September 2019, in the midst of the Rybolovlev case, Judge Edouard Levrault was abruptly dismissed from his position and his second term was not renewed. Levrault filed multiple appeals challenging the dismissal and non renewal of his post, all of which were turned down by Monaco's Supreme Court, which said its decision was "administrative," not "punitive."

Levrault's departure was marred by the exposure of WhatsApp exchanges between him and Brigitte Gambarini, the head of the Court of the Appeal of Monaco. During his three-year tenure in Monaco, Levrault had been involved in sensitive cases, such as Monacogate, which led to charges against prominent figures in Monaco, Narmino, Haget, and Masseron.

The situation escalated when Levrault appeared on a televised program and criticized the local justice system, prompting French justice minister Eric Dupond Moretti, who had previously represented one of the accused, to initiated disciplinary proceedings against him. The move raised suspicions of political interference in Levrault's removal from Monaco.

Dupond-Moretti was charged in 2021 with misusing his position to settle scores with opponents from his legal career. He became the first sitting French justice minister to stand trial and was acquitted in 2023 by the Court of Justice of the Republic (CJR). The trial centered on administrative inquiries initiated by Dupond-Moretti into three judges who had ordered police to examine phone records as part of an investigation into Nicholas Sarkozy. The CJR ultimately acquitted him after 20 witnesses, including France's ex-prime ministerJean Castex and former high court chief prosecutor Francois Molins testified in the case.

Impact

Monacogate brought an end to the career of several public officials, including Justice Minister Narmino. The case has been described as "almost bringing down half the principality" as "it brought back all those charges of Monaco being corrupt and dirty." To Gérard Vespierre, editor of the geopolitics journal Le Monde Décrypté, Monacogate exemplifies how jurisdictions that lack transparency and accountability risk being subverted and ultimately can allow for the rule of law to be undermined by wealthy and influential individuals to further their own agendas."

Rybolovlev's reputation in Monaco was significantly affected by the scandal. In January 2024, the French newspaper Les Echos reported that he planned to sell his stake in Monaco F.C. Rybolovlev's company subsequently appointed Raine Group as its exclusive financial adviser to explore strategic alternatives for the club's stake.

The fallout of Monacogate has also been investigate by the European Court of Human Rights, following a complaint filed by Tetiana Bersheda against the Monaco police for violation of privacy. In June 2024, the court ruled that the conduct of the criminal investigation against Bersheda violated her rights protected under by the European Convention of Human Rights.

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