Boys and their crystal bathtubs Investigation uncovers Russian defense executives owning adjacent villas on Dubai’s artificial island

Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov owns a “dacha cooperative” in Dubai. According to findings by the investigative outlet Sistema, property belonging to the top Russian official sits next to two other villas owned by fellow defense industry executives: Nikolai Kolesov of Russian Helicopters and Alexander Mikheyev of Rosoboronexport.

The villas belonging to Chemezov, Kolesov, and Mikheyev are located in the “22 Carat” villa community in one of Dubai’s most expensive districts — on the artificial Palm Jumeirah island, two sources familiar with the Rostec chief’s inner circle told Sistema. The publication describes the “22 Carat” complex as “a gated community consisting of a private 200-meter beach, a condominium hotel, and 22 ‘ultra-luxury’ villas in the style of Italian palazzos.” According to Sistema’s sources, Chemezov and his associates own the three most expensive villas, aligned along the waterfront.

Every villa in the complex has seven bedrooms and a private pool, according to a 2018 report by RBC, while the most expensive properties (classified in the “Sapphire” category) come with a bonus: a “jewelry” bathtub. Some of these bathtubs are made from solid crystal, while others are made from rose or green quartz. Each bathtub is valued at $1 million. Sapphire-category villas cost $25.8 million in 2020, but, as Sistema notes, they’re now marketed at $30 million.

Beyond Chemezov’s closest associates, the “22 Carat” complex also houses longtime acquaintances who appear on Forbes’ wealth rankings or belong to their inner circles, according to Sistema. Among them, the journalists identified Kalashnikov Concern co-owner Andrey Bokarev and billionaire Alisher Usmanov’s niece, Gulnoz Kocharova.

Sergey Chemezov has visited the UAE annually since 2015, sometimes several times a year, according to leaked border crossing data. A source close to the Rostec chief says he spends “virtually every vacation” in Dubai. Sistema’s sources say Chemezov and his inner circle considered purchasing the villas while the “22 Carat” complex was still under construction and bought them several years before it opened in December 2018. “They invested heavily, [viewing the villas] as a second home,” says one of Sistema’s sources. He claims that Chemezov and his wife personally selected the interior for their villa and supervised the renovation.

Sistema identifies the developer of “22 Carat” as the Russian construction company Forum Group, headquartered in Yekaterinburg. The company was founded by businessman Oleg Cherepanov, who, according to data cited by Sistema, had connections to criminal groups. Cherepanov’s lawyers deny these ties, and he has been living in Dubai since 2014.

Citing the database maintained by C4ADS, a nonprofit organization that disclosed Dubai property data spanning 2020 and 2022, Sistema reports that Chemezov’s villa is registered to a company called Neve Limited. Journalists were unable to find information about the business, except for the contact details listed in the villa’s information, which led them to lawyer Natalya Agapova, who has been connected to Chemezov since the early 2000s.

Nikolai Kolesov registered his villa under Veles Electronics, a company incorporated in the UAE. The Anti-Corruption Foundation found the Russian Helicopters chief’s connection to this firm in a recent investigation.

Rosoboronexport’s chief, Alexander Mikheyev, has a villa registered in his son’s name. Meanwhile, the elder Mikheyev, who has worked exclusively in state companies since 2001, has never once disclosed his earnings, Sistema observes. Chemezov, however, has regularly declared his family income. Journalists identify his wife as the primary source of the family’s wealth, earned from contracts with Rostec subsidiaries and business deals with the state corporation’s partners.

Rostec, Rosoboronexport, and Russian Helicopters did not respond to journalists’ inquiries. Natalya Agapova, the lawyer linked to Chemezov, and the younger Mikheyev likewise declined to speak with reporters.

Sistema notes that the habit of “settling among old comrades” is characteristic of Russian officials and recalls one of the most famous dacha cooperatives of this kind — “Ozero,” founded in the 1990s by Vladimir Putin and his friends. Chemezov apparently has more than one such “dacha cooperative” abroad. In 2019, journalists reported on a settlement on the Mediterranean coast in Spain, where the Rostec CEO’s relatives and inner-circle associates had taken up residence.