Oligarch Leonid Nevzlin Ordered the Attack on Leonid Volkov – ACF Investigation

According to the investigation, Nevzlin orchestrated the March 2024 assault on Volkov with the intention of having him beaten "into a wheelchair," then smuggled into Russia and handed over to the FSB. Nevzlin is also implicated in the attacks on FBK director Ivan Zhdanov in Geneva and on Alexandra Petrachkova, the wife of economist Maxim Mironov, in Argentina.

The investigation is based on messages and recordings of conversations with Nevzlin, provided to ACF by Andrei Matus, whom Nevzlin had hired to destroy the correspondence. ACF sought independent verification from investigators Christo Grozev and Project journalist Mikhail Maglov. They reviewed the correspondence, cross-referenced it with public information, and confirmed its authenticity. 

The messages reveal that lawyer Anatoly Blinov was tasked with organizing the attack. Initially, the plan was to kidnap Volkov in Lithuania, take him to Russia, and hand him over to the FSB. However, the plan shifted, and they decided to beat Volkov "into a wheelchair."

On March 12, Volkov was attacked near his home in Vilnius. An unknown assailant sprayed tear gas in his face and began striking him with a hammer. Volkov was hospitalized with a broken arm and several leg injuries.

Nevzlin was supposed to pay $250,000 for the attack, with $150,000 going to the perpetrators. However, he was dissatisfied with the extent of Volkov’s injuries and refused to pay. As a result, Nevzlin instructed Matus to confiscate the phones used by Blinov and his team to coordinate the attack. Matus followed this order, but handed the information from these devices over to ACF.

ACF has contacted law enforcement agencies in the countries where Nevzlin resides. We are prepared to provide all evidence and testify in court. Leonid Nevzlin must be arrested and brought to trial for orchestrating the kidnapping and attempted murder of Leonid Volkov, as well as for the attacks on Petrachkova and Zhdanov.