The operation was personally overseen by the head of the SVR’s Internal Security Directorate.
Collage: Vyacheslav Solovyov (right), Alexander Filatov (left)
This week in Dubai, Russia’s security services detained Vyacheslav Solovyov, the former CEO of VEB-Leasing (a subsidiary of Vnesheconombank, one of the key instruments of the government's investment policy). The Insider discovered that the operation was personally overseen by General Alexander Filatov — head of the SVR’s Internal Security Directorate — a highly unusual occurrence.
The arrest took place on August 5 at the Dubai Mall. The former VEB-Leasing chief was with his wife, who attempted to physically intervene. Masked men dressed in camouflage roughly shoved her aside, knocking her to the ground. Solovyov was taken to the Russian Embassy in Dubai and was flown to Moscow the following day.
Vyacheslav Solovyov served as CEO of VEB-Leasing from 2008 to 2016. The company is a subsidiary of Vnesheconombank (renamed VEB.RF in 2018). In March 2016, Solovyov unexpectedly failed to show up for work. As was later discovered, he had gone to Switzerland for medical treatment. He never returned to the office. In his absence, VEB’s management initiated a financial audit of VEB-Leasing, which revealed a loss of 14 billion rubles in 2015 (around $230 million at the time).
In 2018, information became public that Solovyov and other senior executives of the company were under investigation for fraud. They were accused of signing contracts “on non-market terms” with companies that turned out to be affiliated with one another. The price of vehicles in the paperwork was allegedly doubled, with the funds subsequently funneled to offshore accounts.
Transparency International Russia also discovered that Solovyov and three members of his family hold Maltese passports.
Russian intelligence learned of Solovyov’s whereabouts a year ago. Since then, negotiations had been ongoing with the UAE authorities — who typically refuse to extradite suspects who have fled abroad. As The Insider discovered, the former VEB-Leasing CEO also faces charges of “espionage,” which carries a prison sentence of 10 to 20 years. The arrest was personally overseen by General Alexander Filatov, head of the SVR’s Internal Security Directorate — an exceptionally rare occurrence.
Filatov is an extremely secretive figure. There were no publicly available photographs of him — until now. The Insider has managed to obtain one.
Filatov commands the SVR’s elite “Zaslon” unit (Lit. “Backstop”), whose operatives provide security for top Russian officials during overseas trips, as well as for the country’s largest embassies.
The general does not live under his own identity. However, The Insider has learned that he graduated from the FSB Academy, was seconded to the Ministry of Economic Development, and has frequently traveled abroad. At one point, Filatov served in the FSB’s Internal Security Directorate and was expected to take a senior position in the agency’s special department. However, he was later unexpectedly transferred to the SVR. According to sources in the intelligence community, Filatov is part of the close circle of Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin.