Lev Leviev

In 2018, Israeli police and tax authorities investigated an alleged diamond smuggling network linked to LLD Diamonds. Lev Leviev, the group's owner, was subsequently questioned on his return to Israel. In 2022, authorities closed the case against him because of insufficient evidence linking him directly to the events; LLD and its operational manager concluded separate proceedings.

Attribution

Personally implicated

Several years after the first restructuring, Africa Israel again sought a debt agreement in 2016, particularly following the severe deterioration of its Russian assets. Bondholders threatened legal action against Leviev; the process ultimately ended in a change of control, terminating his role as the group's controlling shareholder.

State of the evidence

Settlement

Arkady Gaydamak sued Leviev in London's High Court over a 2001 agreement concerning their Angolan diamond interests. The judge found that the 2001 agreement had indeed been signed, contrary to Leviev's position, but also ruled that a 2011 settlement agreement had resolved the relevant claims, causing Gaydamak's action to fail.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

In 2013, the Tel Aviv District Court authorised a class action against Africa Israel concerning allegations that important information about its ability to repay debt had not been disclosed to the market in time before the 2009 crisis announcement. Leviev was the controlling shareholder at the time.

Africa Israel Investments, controlled by Leviev, announced in 2009 that it would be unable to meet its bond obligations in full following the global property crisis. An extensive restructuring agreement was subsequently negotiated with creditors, involving a personal contribution by Leviev and a reorganisation of obligations.

State of the evidence

Documented

In 2008, UNICEF announced that it would no longer participate in events associated with Lev Leviev or accept contributions from him, following criticism concerning the alleged involvement of companies he owned in construction within Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

State of the evidence

Settlement

A report by Rafael Marques on the diamond-producing Cuango region of Angola described alleged killings, torture, beatings and other abuses attributed to security companies operating around mining concessions, including certain activities linked to the Leviev group. The affair fuelled international controversy over corporate responsibility in the diamond industry's security arrangements.

Attribution

Indirectly implicated