LOS ANGELES ( Associated Press) – The federal government is looking to seize a mega-mansion in a particular area of Los Angeles that it claims was bought with millions of bribes paid to Armenia’s former finance minister and his sons, it said. was announced on Thursday.
A complaint filed in federal court on Monday sought to confiscate the 33,652-square-foot (3,126-square-metre) mansion in Holmby Hills.
The home was purchased for $14.4 million in 2011 by a trust on behalf of Gagik Khachaturyan and his two sons, all of whom are facing criminal charges in Armenia, according to a US Justice Department complaint.
It was not immediately clear whether he had lawyers in the United States who could speak on his behalf regarding the seizure request. No lawyer was listed for him in the complaint.
The property, located near the former Playboy mansion, was later rebuilt into a French Normandy-style estate with 11 bedrooms and 26 full or partial baths and includes a pool, wine cellar, home theater and maids’ quarters, according to the real estate listing. Are included.
According to the federal complaint, it was taken to market last month with a price tag of $63.5 million.
Khachaturyan, who was known as “Super Minister” because of his many responsibilities, was chairman of the State Revenue Committee of Armenia from 2008 to 2014 and Minister of Finance from 2014 to 2016.
The US government argues that wealthy and influential businessman Sedrak Aristman, who is also charged in Armenia, paid Khachaturian and his family more than $20 million in bribes in exchange for favorable tax treatment of their businesses and part of that money. Holmby went in to buy. Hills Estate.
The government alleges that the house was illegally purchased with proceeds from a crime against a foreign nation involving the bribery of a public official.
