France detains sanctioned Russian oligarch Kuzmichov

French investigators have detained Russian oligarch Alexei Kuzmichov in connection with money-laundering, tax evasion and the violation of international sanctions, Paris prosecutors confirmed to dpa on Monday.
Properties linked to Kuzmichov, who is under sanctions relating to the war in Ukraine, have been searched, both in Paris and in the south of France.
Kuzmichov holds a stake in the Alfa Group, one of Russia's largest financial and industrial concerns.
According to newspaper Le Monde, he own yachts and property in France. The newspaper reported that his villa in St Tropez in the south of France had been searched.
Kuzmichov is seen as highly influential and as having close links to President Vladimir Putin.
Under the sanctions imposed on him, the oligarch is not permitted to spend time in any European Union member state.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February last year, France froze assets of Russian oligarchs to the amount of around €850 million ($900 million), including yachts and villas on the Côte d'Azur, where wealthy Russians have long invested.