The estranged husband of Russia’s richest woman has been arrested and charged with murder after two people were killed in a shootout at his wife’s company, Wildberries — Russia’s largest online retailer.
Billionaire Tatyana Bakalchuk, 48, released an emotional message on Telegram early Thursday, saying her husband Vladislav Bakalchuk, 47, led an armed raid into its central Moscow offices on Wednesday.
The couple, who filed for divorce in July, has been entangled in a bitter dispute since Wildberries — founded as Russia’s answer to Amazon — announced plans to merge with outdoor advertising firm Russ Group in June.
Tatyana Bakalchuk, who is also the company’s chief executive, said her spouse broke into the building with armed men and opened fire in what she called a botched attempt to seize the commerce giant by force.
Vladislav Bakalchuk’s lawyers later said in a message on his Telegram account that he was “detained for 48 hours” and charged with murder, attempted murder, assault of a law enforcement officer and vigilantism, The Times of London reported.
Two people, including a security guard, were killed and several others injured in the shooting that unfolded just a few streets from the Kremlin.
Vladislav Bakalchuk and a group of men reportedly came to the offices on Wednesday, for what he said were peaceful negotiations that turned violent.
He alleges that it was staff at the office who fired the first shots.
Wildberries disputed his account, saying his men were the “first to open fire” and that he had no right to enter the building as a former employee.
“How will you look into the eyes of your parents and our children? How could you do this?” Tatyana Bakalchuk cried.
The incident came weeks after Wildberries finalized a controversial merger deal that Russian President Vladimir Putin had personally approved.
But Vladislav Bakalchuk opposed the move and denounced it as a “huge mistake,” claiming his “family business” had fallen into the hands of crooks and that his wife had been “manipulated.”
Tatyana Bakalchuk, who owns the majority stake in Wildberries, founded the company in 2004 with her then-IT technician husband, who holds a 1% stake.
The couple has been embroiled in a bitter and public dispute since Wildberries announced plans to merge with outdoor advertising firm Russ Group in June.
Tatyana Bakalchuk announced the pair had separated and were getting a divorce in July.
According to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index in 2021, she was the 40th richest woman in the world and the first self-made woman billionaire out of Russia.
With Post wires
