Cambodia Detains Russian Businessman After Scuffle

January 4, 2013, 
The Wall Street Journal
By JAMES MARSON AND CHUN HAN WONG

MOSCOW—Cambodian authorities have detained Russian tycoon Sergei Polonsky over an alleged assault on local boatmen in a disputed case that a lawyer for the businessman described as "a misunderstanding."

Mr. Polonsky, a colorful real-estate developer who was once one of Russia's richest men, and two others were detained Sunday over an alleged attack the day before on the six-man crew of a boat that was ferrying them to the Cambodian mainland from an island, according to Heang Nen, chief of military police in the southern Sihanoukville province.

It was unclear late Friday whether Mr. Polonsky, who disputes the police version of events, was still being held. A statement posted on his blog site said he has been released on his personal recognizance, with travel restrictions. But Russia's consul in Cambodia said he believed Mr. Polonsky was still being held. The businessman's lawyer, Alexander Dobrovinsky, said late Friday he understood his client could be released imminently. A Cambodian official said his case would be decided by a court.

Mr. Polonsky, an outspoken blogger whose posts range from his thoughts on business to photos of exotic animals on his shoulders, was worth $1.2 billion in 2008, according to Forbes magazine, before his Mirax Group property development firm collapsed in the wake of the financial crisis. He gained attention in September 2011 when he was floored by a punch from another wealthy tycoon, Alexander Lebedev, during a live television broadcast.

Mr. Heang Nen said Mr. Polonsky and two other men—identified only as Karachinsky, 24, and Baglay, 25—face charges of committing "intentional violence" and "illegal detention" and are being held in the provincial jail.

It isn't clear when the three are due in court. If convicted, they could be jailed for up to three years and fined up to $2,500.

According to police documents cited by Mr. Heang Nen, the three men had boarded the boat from Koh Rong island off the coast of Sihanoukville. During the journey to the mainland, Mr. Polonsky allegedly threatened the boat's captain with a knife and locked him in a room, the official said.

The boatmen—Cambodian nationals of ages 25 to 40—also accused Mr. Polonsky of forcing some of them off the vessel, leaving them to be picked up by passing fishermen and a navy ship, Mr. Heang Nen said.

Mr. Polonsky's blog describes a different series of events, claiming a dispute arose after he and some friends set off fireworks on an uninhabited island to celebrate New Year. Soldiers based on a neighboring island came to check their identity papers, which they didn't have with them. The soldiers then "rudely" took him away to a military base to establish his identity. "Such behavior provoked a sharp reaction from Sergei Polonsky, an emotional man" the statement said.

Mr. Polonsky is chairman and founder of real-estate group Potok, the successor company to the defunct Mirax. Potok operates in Russia, Ukraine, France, Cambodia, Switzerland, the U.S. and the U.K., according to its website. Its Cambodian assets include a resort on Koh Dek Koule island, located off the coast of Sihanoukville.

—Sun Narin and Jacob Pedersen contributed to this article