Moshkovich, who served in Russia’s upper house of parliament from 2006 to 2014, was arrested in March and has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

RIA said the request also covers five other defendants, including former Rusagro Chief Executive Maxim Basov.

A court hearing on the matter is scheduled for May 4.Prosecutors are seeking to seize land plots, movable and immovable property, cash and company assets worth several billion roubles.

The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) said the artworks, valued at approximately $198,000, were retrieved in coordination with U.S. authorities and form part of broader efforts to recover assets allegedly misappropriated from 1Malaysia Development Berhad between 2009 and 2014.

The collection includes Picasso’s “L’Ecuyère et les clowns” (1961), alongside works by Joan Miró, Maurice Utrillo and Balthus. Authorities said the pieces had been held in the United States and were among artworks linked to individuals associated with the fund.
The MACC said the items are now under strict security and undergoing environmental stabilisation before authentication and valuation by Malaysia’s National Visual Arts Development Board.

The repatriation follows earlier coordination with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Justice, as Malaysia continues efforts to trace and recover assets across jurisdictions.
Authorities said some of the recovered works had previously been stored at major auction houses, including Christie’s and Sotheby’s, after being seized from a former lawyer linked to 1MDB.

Malaysia has sought to recover more than $4.5 billion believed to have been siphoned from the sovereign fund in a global scheme involving luxury assets ranging from real estate to artwork.

To date, about 31.2 billion ringgit ($7.90 billion) has been recovered, representing nearly 70% of identified assets, according to the MACC.

The 1MDB case, co-founded by former prime minister Najib Razak, has triggered investigations in multiple countries.

Najib was convicted and jailed in 2022 over charges linked to the scandal, which he has consistently denied.
The MACC said the recovered artworks may be publicly displayed before any decision is made on potential sale.

The case centres on allegations that Lafarge, via its subsidiary Lafarge Cement Syria, paid millions of euros in 2013 and 2014 to armed groups and intermediaries to ensure continued production at its Jalabiya facility in northern Syria during the country’s civil war.

The ruling follows a 2022 case in the United States in which Lafarge pleaded guilty to conspiring to provide material support to designated terrorist organizations and agreed to pay a $778 million fine, marking the first time a corporation faced such charges under U.S. law.

French prosecutors allege that the company made payments totaling at least 4.7 million euros ($5.5 million) to groups including Islamic State and Jabhat al-Nusra, in exchange for access to raw materials and safe passage for employees and goods.

The payments allegedly continued until September 2014, when Islamic State fighters seized control of the plant.Lafarge completed construction of the $680 million facility in 2010, shortly before the outbreak of the Syrian conflict in 2011, triggered by protests against then-president Bashar al-Assad.

While many multinational firms exited Syria in 2012, Lafarge maintained operations, evacuating expatriate staff but retaining local employees until the site fell under militant control.Defendants include the company, its former chief executive Bruno Lafont, several former operational and security staff, and two Syrian intermediaries.

They face charges including financing terrorism and violating international sanctions.The French national counter-terrorism prosecutor’s office has argued that Lafarge acted with “a single aim: profit,” seeking the maximum corporate fine of 1.12 million euros and confiscation of 30 million euros in assets.

Prosecutors have also requested a six-year prison sentence for Lafont, who has denied knowledge of any illicit payments.During the trial, former deputy managing director Christian Herrault said the decision to keep the plant operating was driven by concern for local employees rather than financial gain.

Lafarge was acquired by Swiss group Holcim in 2015, which has said it had no knowledge of the Syria-related dealings.A separate judicial investigation into potential complicity in crimes against humanity remains ongoing.

The case originated from a 2017 inquiry following media reports and complaints filed by the French finance ministry, non-governmental organizations, and former employees.

Li, a former chairman of the board at Huione Pay, is accused of being a core member of a criminal syndicate linked to Chinese-Cambodian businessman Chen Zhi, according to Chinese state broadcaster CCTV.

Chen was extradited to China in January and is currently in detention, authorities said.The case is part of a broader international crackdown on transnational fraud networks operating across Southeast Asia.

The United States said last October that it and the United Kingdom had taken action against Chen’s Prince Group, describing it as a criminal enterprise involved in online investment scams. U.S. authorities also accused the Huione Group of laundering proceeds from such schemes, as well as cyber heists linked to North Korea.

According to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, the Huione Group allegedly laundered at least $4 billion in illicit proceeds between August 2021 and January 2025.

Reuters could not seek comment from Huione, which has since been dissolved. A U.S.-based representative for Prince Group did not immediately respond to requests for comment outside business hours.

Cambodian government spokesperson Touch Sokhak said China had sent experts to assist local authorities in the investigation, which ultimately led to Li’s arrest and extradition.

“This shows Cambodia’s will to clear out online scams and that Cambodia is not a safe haven for scam criminals,” Sokhak said.

China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing would continue to work with Cambodia to combat cross-border telecommunications fraud, highlighting deepening cooperation between the two countries in tackling organised financial crime.