The European Magnitsky Law event has been canceled after German authorities refused to grant safe passage to William Browder, the head of Hermitage Capital, who was due to speak at the event in Berlin on May 27.Germany's refusal to grant Browder safe passage comes after Russian authorities filed a request with Interpol to monitor the investor's international movements. Browder is wanted in Russia on charges of tax evasion.
Browder has denied the charges and tied them to his work with late lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who was arrested in 2008 after reporting the embezzlement of $230 million by tax authorities.
Magnitsky later died in a pre-trial detention center after being refused treatment for a medical problem. The Kremlin human rights council also ruled that the lawyer had been beaten before his death.
In April this year, the U.S. imposed sanctions on a number of Russian officials implicated in the Magnitsky case. Browder, who has campaigned for the adoption of a similar law in Europe, was due to speak at the Magnitsky Law event next Monday.
Germany's refusal to protect Browder at the event has drawn the ire of the Hermitage group, who released a statement saying "the German authorities are … becoming an accessory to the Russian cover-up of Magnitsky's killers."
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