Moscow Court Extends U.S. Investor Calvey's House Arrest Until Mid-July

A Moscow court has extended until July 14 the house arrest of U.S. investor Michael Calvey, whose detention stunned the business community in Moscow and clouded the investment climate.

The Basmanny district court announced the ruling on April 12, a day after it ordered Calvey to be released from pretrial detention and placed under house arrest instead.

The court rejected the request by Calvey's lawyers to release their client on bail or on condition that he not leave Moscow.

Another suspect in the high-profile case, Aleksei Kordichev, the former chief of Vostochny Bank, was also released from pretrial detention and placed under house arrest on April 11.

The court said that Kordichev pleaded guilty and testified against two other suspects in the case.

Calvey, 51, founded the Moscow-based private-equity firm Baring Vostok in 1994. He, Kordichev, and four others were detained in February and charged with financial fraud.

The arrests have underscored the dangers of doing business in Russia and deepened Western concerns about the rule of law.

Kremlin critics have called for the release of Calvey, who was confined to the Lefortovo jail in Moscow since shortly after his arrest.

Calvey's business partners -- Frenchman Philippe Delpal, Vagan Abgarian, Ivan Zyuzin, and Maksim Vladimirov -- remain in pretrial detention.

The charges against Calvey and his five associates stem from allegations of embezzlement involving the Vostochny Bank in which Baring Vostok has a controlling stake.

Calvey's arrests shocked the Moscow business community in part because he had avoided political controversy and was considered instrumental in helping develop Russian tech companies.

Based on reporting by Meduza and RIA Novosti