A French court has ordered Russian businessman and lawmaker Suleiman Kerimov, who is under formal investigation on suspicion of tax evasion, to pay 40 million euros ($47 million) bail.
Kerimov, a member of Russia's upper house of parliament, was arrested in Nice on November 20 over suspicions related to the purchase of luxury properties on the French Riviera.
He posted bail of 5 million euros and handed in his passport a few days later. But prosecutors called for a higher amount, and a court in the town of Aix-en-Provence set it at 40 million euros on December 6
Kerimov declined to speak to reporters as he left the courthouse, flanked by bodyguards.
Kerimov's fortune was most recently estimated at $6.3 billion by Forbes magazine.
The arrest of Kerimov, who represents Daghestan in Russia's Federation Council, angered Moscow.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said on November 22 that it had summoned the charge d'affaires of the French Embassy in Moscow to protest.
The Foreign Ministry said earlier that it had notified France that he has diplomatic immunity.
