IKEA's Russian central office searched
On Thursday, April 14th, agents of the Moscow Department of Combating Economic Crimes raided the Central Office of the Russian Division of IKEA on the Leningrad highway, Interfax reported. The employees of IKEA consider what was happening as part of a campaign to seize the land. Earlier a criminal case was mounted against IKEA with the charge of large-scale swindling.
Company lawyer Semen Shevchenko stated that "We perceive what is happening as a part of the campaign to seize the land on which the Central Office of IKEA in Russia is located. Today's search and the recent criminal case against IKEA, initiated by the Collective Agricultural Enterprises ‘Khimki” of course are the links of one chain.” According to Shevchenko, law enforcement has become a de facto tool for raids and attacks on the company.
Khimki, owned by the Cyprus offshore company "Bassam Investments Limited,” has been trying to take over IKEA’s real estate since 2012, Shevchenko says. The first attempt in January 2015 was a criminal case dismissed for lack of evidence.
On Monday, April 11th, a new criminal case was initiated against IKEA for large-scale swindling, according to news agency Kommersant. The Collective Enterprise has accused IKEA of the illegal acquisition 16 hectares of land on the Leningrad highway through the use of false documents.