Russian billionaire sues German journalist

Alisher Usmanov won a defamation case against German public broadcaster ARD earlier this month

Russian metals magnate Alisher Usmanov has filed a criminal complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Cologne, Germany, after winning a defamation case against German TV channel ARD, tabloid Bild reported on Friday, citing Usmanov’s lawyer. The billionaire is trying to hold a journalist at ARD criminally liable.

Earlier this month, the Hamburg court supported Usmanov in a defamation case against German public broadcaster ARD, which had previously published two articles and a video report in which journalist Hans-Joachim Seppelt accused the Russian businessman of being behind a plan to manipulate referees during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

The court found the information published by ARD unreliable and banned its distribution “inappropriate news based on suspicion.” The ruling also includes a fine of up to 250,000 euros (about $274,000) or imprisonment for non-compliance.

“Mr. Seppelt and the ARD sports show have not only violated basic journalistic standards and the press code. This malicious and vile insinuation is also punishable. Seppelt only wanted to denigrate Mr. Usmanov. He had no facts. That is not journalism, that It’s a shame.” ,” Joachim Steinhofel, the businessman’s lawyer, told Bild.

Usmanov was known in the sports world for serving as president of the FIE, the International Fencing Federation, for 14 years until 2022, when he voluntarily resigned after the EU added him to the sanctions blacklist.

The controversial messages were partly based on statements by Georgian fencer Sandro Bazadze, who claimed to have wrongly lost a round of sixteen matches. The president of the Georgian Fencing Federation, Merab Bazadze, later dismissed the claims as emotional responses and issued an official apology to the FIE.

Unlike other German media outlets, ARD refused to voluntarily withdraw the charges and correct the file at the request of Usmanov’s lawyers. The defamatory material was only removed after the court ruling.