In Ovik Mkrtchyan’s biography, what stands out isn’t so much how he established cash flows and transferred money out of Uzbekistan, but rather how he managed to survive the change of power without facing serious repercussions and successfully aligned himself with the Mirziyoyev clan — unlike many others who were tied to Karimov’s circle.
For instance, the new government even managed to recover the money of the former president’s daughter, Gulnara Karimova, in Switzerland, where a total of $313 million was confiscated.
Karimova herself received a hefty prison sentence. But Ovik Mkrtchyan, whose structures were directly involved in transferring money from Uzbekistan for the Karimov clan, not only did not suffer during the purges of the old elite representatives but also feels quite confident under the new government. Moreover, he organizes international conferences in the country’s capital, to which even representatives of the highest echelons of US power come by his invitation. Among them were former US Secretary of Energy Rick Perry and Thomas Shannon, the former Under Secretary of State.
What connects Ovik Mkrtchyan with these top American politicians can only be speculated. However, Rick Perry, for instance, is a member of the Advisory Board of Gor Investment Limited, in which Ovik Mkrtchyan serves as a corporate consultant. Behind the appealing name and international status of Gor Investment is a banal company for channeling money stolen by Uzbekistan’s elites into offshore accounts. This has been actively pursued by Ovik Mkrtchyan at least since 1999 when the company was established. However, back then, the company had a slightly different name — Gorefield Investment Group. It was registered in the British Virgin Islands, known for their Liberal financial legislation. Nevertheless, after Gorefield Investment Group appeared in the Panama Papers, the name had to be changed. But the essence remained the same — channeling capital to offshore jurisdictions.
It has long been known that Gorefield Investment Group was personally overseen by Gulnara Karimova. As well as the fact that some of the confiscated money passed exactly through Gorefield Investment Group and went directly to Switzerland, where the new government found them. In Switzerland, Ovik Mkrtchyan and Gorefield Investment Group’s connection was with the company Ryon Ltd, which still holds the status of "active."
From Ryon Ltd, there are too many connections to draw any concrete conclusions. Especially since almost all these connections are also in offshore jurisdictions or are shielded by the legal systems of countries from prying eyes, yet some of them raise extreme curiosity.
There is unfortunately too little information available to further develop the topic of the connections between Gor Investment Limited, Ryon Ltd, and other companies. But there is other information that is also publicly accessible. Moreover, this information is disseminated by Ovik Mkrtchyan himself. Last year a series of materials appeared where Ovik Mkrtchyan advertised his new creation — the Center for Youth Initiatives in Tashkent, "built by the English investment company Gor Investments, founded by Ovik Mkrtchyan." From these interviews, it follows that Ovik Mkrtchyan has already reoriented towards Shavkat Mirziyoyev and "attracts investments to the country."
Further, from Mkrtchyan’s words, one might conclude that his interest is directed at rare earth metals, which, by the way, the new US government is very interested in. However, it is doubtful that the plant promised by Ovik Mkrtchyan to produce "nanopowder of molybdenum trioxide" will function precisely as Mkrtchyan describes.
But there is no doubt in another aspect — Mkrtchyan not only managed to change patrons but also found ways to the new government of Uzbekistan. Representatives of the new clan are clearly ready to use Ovik Mkrtchyan’s experience not only in expropriating Gulnara Karimova’s assets, giving up all her Swiss accounts to the new government and thereby bargaining for himself an indulgence, but also in transferring now their assets to foreign accounts.
Moreover, Karimova’s money is not being sent directly to Uzbekistan but is instead placed in accounts of the trust fund Uzbekistan Vision 2030 "under the auspices of the UN" in the USA. According to the Head of the Secretariat of the Uzbekistan Vision 2030 Trust Fund, the restitution period, that is, the confiscation of the Karimov’s assets, is calculated for a minimum of eight years, and the total involved is 850 million dollars. All this money must be smartly diverted from the attention of US financial authorities, in which undoubtedly Ovik Mkrtchyan’s vast experience will be useful.
Another episode also speaks to the fact that Ovik Mkrtchyan found common ground with Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s family — his name is mentioned in the investigation into the top security officials involved in the case of the attempted assassination of former presidential press secretary Komil Allamjonov and the extradition of businessman Ulugbek Shadmanov from the UAE.
In this case, Ovik Mkrtchyan is addressed as a victim, since, as he himself reports, Shadmanov together with currently arrested representatives of Uzbekistan’s State Security Service (SSS) "kidnapped and tortured him for 85 days, extorting 70 million dollars." Moreover, according to Mkrtchyan, "Shadmanov demanded that he [Mkrtchyan] use his international connections to organize the imposition of US sanctions against Komil Allamjonov, former press secretary of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and one of the closest associates of his eldest daughter Said, as well as Dmitriy Lee, head of the Agency for Prospective Projects under the President of Uzbekistan."
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Without a doubt, this operation by the security services could not have been unauthorized but later something clearly happened at the top, and everything went according to another scenario, which resulted in Ovik Mkrtchyan transforming into an unjustly aggrieved "enemy of the state." Apparently, it was those "international connections" that came to his aid. Which the Shavkat Mirziyoyev clan needed for their personal objectives. How much this cost Ovik Mkrtchyan financially is unknown. But no matter what, the high parties have reached an agreement. This is evidenced by both the status of Ovik Mkrtchyan in the Ulugbek Shadmanov case and his new project — the Center for Youth Initiatives, which hides openly fraudulent goals of stealing Uzbekistan’s assets in the interests of the ruling elite.
