RUSSIAN oligarch Roman Abramovich has accused Jersey’s ministers and law enforcement agencies of “politically-motivated” misconduct, “unlawful overreach” and a series of breaches of judicial procedure over a four-year criminal investigation that has yet to produce a charge.
A spokesperson for the billionaire exclusively told the JEP that Jersey had “illegitimately” targeted Mr Abramovich in an bid to improve Jersey’s reputation as a financial centre after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – despite the Island previously “encouraging Russian wealth to move to the Island”.
The statement was shared with this newspaper by representatives of the Russian oligarch after a gagging order was this week lifted, revealing details of ongoing legal battles between the former Chelsea FC owner and the Government of Jersey.
The government faced a series of judicial criticisms over deleted data, inconsistent explanations, and what the court described as “deficiencies” extending “far beyond” an admitted email purge.
The tycoon’s spokesperson said Mr Abramovich was “lawfully” granted Jersey residency after passing a “strict, multi-agency vetting process” coordinated with the UK government, during which “Jersey itself confirmed the legitimacy of his funds and investments”.
The statement continued that “the source of Mr Abramovich’s wealth has always been transparent and is entirely legitimate and this did not change post-2022 events”.
The representative accused Jersey authorities of repeated violations of basic judicial procedure, including misleading the courts, and obtaining unlawful search warrants – for which the States of Jersey Police apologised and paid damages in 2022.
The statement continued: “Since then, Mr Abramovich has challenged the premises of the investigation in several Court proceedings against the Jersey authorities.
“Throughout these proceedings, additional severe misconduct of the authorities has come to light, in which the government has been strongly criticised by the Jersey Court for deleting materials relating to the case, and refusing to provide relevant materials for two-and-a-half years.
“We are grateful that Jersey courts have taken these matters seriously, as demonstrated by the fact that Mr Abramovich was allowed earlier this year to introduce claims of conspiracy against the Government of Jersey.”
The JEP reported last week that theses were allowed after government officials admitted that an internal email-archiving system was purged in 2022 to delete data from before March 2020.
This was enough to justify the allegations of conspiracy and bad faith against the government progressing towards trial, according to court documents.
Mr Abramovich’s spokesperson added: “It should be noted that no charges have been brought against Mr Abramovich in the three-and-a-half years since the investigation was commenced, and, to our knowledge, in fact no progress has been made on this case.
“This is not surprising, as this case is entirely baseless – and Mr Abramovich will continue to challenge these claims as well as ensure that the obvious violations of rights are recognised for what they are: an unlawful overreach that must be corrected.”
A spokesperson for the Government of Jersey has previously denied the conspiracy accusation.
They said: “The Government of Jersey is aware of recent media reports concerning ongoing legal proceedings involving Mr Roman Abramovich. We respect the independence of the courts and the integrity of the legal process, and we will continue to defend our position vigorously.
“We categorically reject allegations of conspiracy, misfeasance in public office, or bad faith. These claims are entirely without foundation and will be addressed through the appropriate legal channels.
“The Government of Jersey has consistently supported the principle of open justice and opposed Mr Abramovich’s application to the Privy Council for the case to be heard in private.
“However, as proceedings remain active, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”
