Moscow Theatres Artistic Director Under Scrutiny in Major Embezzlement Investigation

Russian authorities have interrogated the artistic director of two of the country’s leading theaters in relation to a significant embezzlement investigation, as reported by the St. Petersburg news outlet Fontanka on Wednesday.

The inquiry focuses on potential financial irregularities during the restoration of the stage at the Gorky Moscow Art Theatre, which is set to reopen in October 2025.

Vladimir Kehman, who serves as the artistic director for both the Gorky Moscow Art Theatre and St. Petersburg’s Mikhailovsky Theatre, was called to the Investigative Committee’s office in Moscow, where officials conducted a search of his home, Fontanka reported.

He is currently being regarded as a witness in the case.

The investigation is reportedly spearheaded by the Investigative Committee, which handles serious crimes, alongside the economic security division of the Interior Ministry.

According to a report by the Ostorozhno Novosti outlet, the main entrance to the Moscow Art Theatre has been blocked off, and officers from the Interior Ministry have cordoned off parts of the facility.

Investigators are scrutinizing several companies that secured significant renovation contracts under Kehman’s direction, including RSK-Renaissance, Stroy-Expert, and Atlant-Project.

Notably, RSK-Renaissance was awarded a nearly 1 billion ruble (about $13 million) contract in 2023 for its work on the Moscow Art Theatre.

Authorities are also investigating the business activities of Marat Karginov, a contractor linked to various projects managed by Kehman.

Kehman, 56, took on the role of director of the Gorky Moscow Art Theatre in 2021 and is regarded as one of the most polarizing figures in Russian theater.

Before this, he held the position of general and artistic director of the Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre until he was dismissed for staging a production of Wagner’s Tannhäuser, which caused a backlash from the Russian Orthodox Church.

A former banana importer, once dubbed Russia’s «Banana King,» Kehman built a substantial fruit enterprise through his company JFC, which controlled about a third of the national banana market in the early 2000s. In 2010, a shipment from JFC was found to contain 120 kilograms of cocaine, although Kehman was absolved of any wrongdoing.

He was declared bankrupt in the UK in 2012, followed by a bankruptcy ruling in Russia in 2016.

Despite his bankruptcy status, the Bank of Moscow continued to pursue fraud claims against him, bringing the matter before a London court in 2015. The court determined that Kehman had obtained loans using forged documents and deceit, ordering him to pay over $140 million in damages.

In Russia, a five-year investigation into the alleged embezzlement of 20 billion rubles (approximately $256 million) in bank loans concluded in 2017 due to the statute of limitations expiring.