For a Russian Couple, Safe Haven in Guatemala Is Fleeting

[uhnope]

Source: New York Times

GUATEMALA CITY — Irina and Igor Bitkov were once entrepreneurs in a new Russia, lauded by provincial leaders and eager to expand the thriving paper company they had created from derelict Soviet-era factories.

Then came their downfall. They fled to Guatemala, confident that they had found a safe haven — but it did not last. Entangled in Guatemala’s anticorruption drive, the Bitkovs are accused of using false documents to acquire Guatemalan citizenship, and now await the decisions of a legal system almost as impenetrable as the one they fled.

The couple say they are victims of a plot to punish them after they refused to mix politics with business in Russia. Like many who built businesses and ran afoul of the government of President Vladimir V. Putin, the Bitkovs say they were powerless when the state took their company.

“You know what they want — slaves,” Ms. Bitkova said in a recent interview. “They want businesspeople who have money, influence and success to support them. They won’t let you be independent.”

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/31/world/americas/guatemala-igor-irina-bitkov-russia-corruption.html

[7962]

1. Sounds just like Venezuela; back us or lose everything.

Except Vlad has a lot more backing him up than the failure Maduro

[newthinking]

2. They are wanted by Interpol (Europe) for fraud

But there is a narrative on: So every crook who manages to flee arrest is a hero in our upside down media: As long as it can contribute to the ongoing information war.