Valery Nikolaevich Kurochkin

Born: 20 June 1964
Died: 2008
Crime: Unable to testify in connection with the $230 million theft due to his death at age 43
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Valery Kurochkin played an important supporting role in the theft of the $230 million dollars from the Russian people.

After Officers Kuznetsov and Karpov seized without a warrant and held custody of the documents and seals for the Hermitage companies, a convicted criminal Viktor Markelov was fraudulently made the owner of these companies, using the documents seized by police Officers Kuznetsov and Karpov. Shortly before this, Markelov was accused of working with Officers Kuznetsov and Karpov and the beneficial owner of Universal Savings Bank, Dmitry Klyuev, to kidnap a man and extort $20 million dollars.

Markelov appointed Valery Kurochkin, himself and another criminal, Vyacheslav Khlebnikov, as directors of the stolen Hermitage companies. He also had the companies open bank accounts in Klyuev’s Universal Savings Bank.

Three criminal directors – Markelov, Kurochkin and Khlebnikov – then issued powers of attorneys to lawyers Pavlov and Mayorova to obtain court judgments for fake debts.

The three criminal directors then applied for fraudulent tax refunds totaling $230 million. Corrupt officials in Moscow Tax Offices 25 and 28 who were members of the Klyuev Organized Crime Group approved the fraudulent tax refunds requests and refunded $230 million to accounts in Klyuev’s Universal Savings Bank.