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The UK has imposed sanctions on an English accountant for his alleged involvement within the procurement of ships for Russia’s shadow fleet in a uncommon transfer towards a British nationwide.
John Michael Ormerod was added to UK sanctions lists on Tuesday alongside two Russian ship captains, 18 shadow fleet vessels and 46 monetary establishments that the British authorities mentioned had helped Russian efforts to evade western restrictions.
The Monetary Instances reported in October that Ormerod had acquired no less than 25 second-hand oil tankers between December 2022 and August 2023 on behalf of Lukoil, Russia’s second-largest oil producer, at a complete value of greater than $700mn.
Every ship was purchased by a distinct particular function firm integrated by Ormerod within the Marshall Islands, however Lukoil’s Dubai-based Eiger Delivery DMCC supplied the funds by paying prematurely to constitution the vessels.
Shipping monitoring information confirmed that the vessels went on to move greater than 120mn barrels of oil from Russia after they have been initially acquired by Ormerod.
Ormerod’s attorneys advised the FT on the time that he had been approached by Eiger in late 2022 “to purchase ships for his or her normal commerce” and that he undertook “in depth due diligence” to determine that the proposed purchases wouldn’t violate any sanctions.
Paperwork reviewed by the FT confirmed that Ormerod later transferred his possession of no less than 14 of the vessels to a Pakistani nationwide. Ormerod’s attorneys mentioned their shopper had ended his involvement with all 25 of the ships by September of 2023 earlier than any of the person vessels have been sanctioned.
An Eton-educated chartered accountant, Ormerod, 74, has little public profile however is thought inside London’s close-knit delivery business. From 1975, he held a sequence of delivery jobs at Hambros Financial institution, Bankers Belief and Den Norske Financial institution earlier than establishing his personal monetary advisory firm, Ormerod Allen & Co, in 1990.
Ormerod didn’t instantly reply to a request for touch upon Tuesday.
