Russian metals magnate Oleg Deripaska is suing the U.S. Department of Treasury to get the federal government to lift the economic sanctions placed on him last year.
The lawsuit asks the federal courts to remove his name from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control “List of Russian Oligarchs,” a move that would essentially lift any sanctions on his accounts and assets. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., and names Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Foreign Asset Control Director Andrea Gacki as defendants. In the complaint, Deripaska argues that he has taken a $7.5 billion hit without any legal basis or justification for the sanctions.
“The effect of these unlawful actions has been the wholesale devastation of Deripaska’s wealth, reputation, and economic livelihood,” his attorney, Eric Ferrari, wrote in the 28-page lawsuit.
Deripaska posted on Instagram Friday confirming that he would file a suit against the U.S., with the lawsuit demanding “to clear my name and remove the sanctions that have been arbitrarily imposed on me for political reasons.” He is also asking the Foreign Asset Control office to provide their legal justification for the sanctions and “to back up the unfounded rumours and innuendo it likes cite.”
The businessman, considered to be one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s staunchest allies and bankrollers, was added in the list in the early part of 2018. The list ultimately became a sanction list of wealthy and powerful Russian nationals who were accused of meddling in the 2016 presidential elections in the U.S.
“Deripaska has been investigated for money laundering, and has been accused of threatening the lives of business rivals, illegally wiretapping a government official, and taking part in extortion and racketeering,” said a Treasury Department press release at the time of his inclusion in the list. “There are also allegations that Deripaska bribed a government official, ordered the murder of a businessman, and had links to a Russian organized crime group.”
The Russian oligarch has been a subject of interest in the Mueller investigation, mainly because of his strong ties to the Russian government and his deep relationship with former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort.
“After all of that time spent investigating Russia’s alleged activities, it is not surprising that OFAC had to rely on rumor and innuendo to designate Deripaska,” the lawsuit says.
“It appears to be the case that there is simply no evidence Deripaska is involved in the Russian Government’s activities.”
