On Thursday, NSK searched Flügger’s head office and the homes of two management members in connection with possible sanctions violations.
The chief executive of the paint and varnish group Flügger, Sune Schnack, and the company’s CFO have been charged in a case of possible violations of EU sanctions against Russia, Flügger confirms to DR. The company Flügger itself is also charged in the case.
The indictment was served in connection with a search of the company’s headquarters, which the National Unit for Special Crimes (NSK) conducted on Thursday.
The two bosses were also arrested on Thursday, but released after questioning. Their private homes were also searched.
On Thursday, Flügger announced in a stock exchange announcement that the company is being investigated by the police. This announcement came after DR had revealed that Flügger’s products are actively marketed in several Russian cities, including at a series of trade fairs, and that Flügger’s paint can be purchased online and physically in stores in Russia.
NSK also informed DR on Thursday that a search and arrest operation had been carried out in Copenhagen on Thursday in connection with a case involving a Danish company’s possible circumvention of sanctions against Russia. It was in this context that the two management members of the listed company were arrested and subsequently released.
Feeling “deceived”
Friday, Flügger informed DR that neither the company nor director Sune Schnack had any further comments on the matter. Flügger stated that the company stopped cooperation with distributors in Kazakhstan, Estonia, Azerbaijan and Kyrgyzstan this winter.
“This was as a result of an investigation conducted in collaboration with external experts, following suspicions that one or more distributors, in violation of both cooperation agreements and guidelines, marketed and resold Flügger products to the Russian market,” reads the stock exchange announcement issued on Thursday.
In it, Sune Schnack stated that he believes the company has been “deceived”:
“It is completely unacceptable, and we are appalled that a former long-standing partner has chosen to deceive us in this way.”
DR has uncovered that Russian businessman Aleksej Popov continues to present himself as Flügger’s representative in the country, even though the agreement with him was terminated in April 2022, Flügger tells DR. Flügger suspects that the resale to Russia took place via one or more distributors.
Ritzau
