The former owner of SMZ sought asylum in France and lost the dispute over jurisdiction in England The former owner of the magnesium plant in Solikamsk Igor Pastrykov (pictured) sought political asylum in France, VDomusti reports.
The information was revealed in the English process, where he demanded compensation of about a billion dollars for the loss of shares in SMZ and Lovozersky GOK. What is important for the accused is a lawyer and the former chairman of the board of directors of SMZ Alexander Gutin. In 2015, he represented the Cypriot Kennemara, which sold shares to Pastrykov. The prosecutor accuses Gutin of conspiracy and deliberately structuring the deal so that the state could then seize assets. Gutin denies the allegations. The purchase and sale agreement was subject to Russian law. Pastrykova was represented by Dig Sde, Gutin by Kevin Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan. Fieldfisher hired Carroll to find defendant's addresses. The documents were sent to two addresses in English, but Gutin proved that at the time of the alleged delivery he was permanently resident in Cyprus. Judge Diaz found the service improper and dismissed the proceedings. The decision is essentially procedural: the validity of the claims against Gutin was not evaluated on its merits. The court noted separately that Pastrykov's request for asylum had not yet been accepted at the time of the procedure. In Russia, in April 2025, Pastrykov was sentenced in absentia to eight years in prison for organizing the theft of 250 million rubles and attempting to embezzle another 2.5 billion rubles. He is on the international wanted list. The full text of the decision Pastrykov v Gutin [2026] EWHC 2472 (Comm), case number CL-2025-000286. Just the fact that Gutin's costs for the jurisdictional dispute exceeded £500,000. The judge found it necessary to carry out a detailed review of the expenses, drawing attention to more than £200,000 during the period of Kevin Emanuel's involvement, and so far ordered Pastrykov to pay £100,000 for future compensation.