Moscow’s Wildberries fends off raid [VIDEO]

At least three people were wounded during a botched raid on the Moscow office of Russian retailer Wildberries on Wednesday, the company’s CEO said, accusing her husband and two former executives of leading the attack.

Videos on social media showed a scuffle near what appeared to be the entrance to the office, while gunshots rang out in the background. A man could be seen wielding a gun in the video.

Wildberries is Russia’s largest online retailer and processes more than 10 million orders a day, according to its own statistics.

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10 detained after botched raid

“Today a group of people led by Vladislav Bakalchuk, Sergei Anufriev and Vladimir Bakin attempted to seize Wildberries offices in Moscow,” said CEO Tatyana Bakalchuk, who is Russia’s richest woman.

“Three people were wounded, we are clarifying their condition,” she added on Telegram.

AFP saw several police vehicles near the office in central Moscow.

Ten people have been detained in connection with the incident, Russia’s state RIA news agency said.

Vladislav denied that he and his men were armed, saying he came to the office to take part in negotiations and that the shooting came from “inside the building”.

Bakalchuk founded Wildberries together with her then IT technician husband Vladislav in 2004, but in July she announced the two had separated and were getting a divorce.

The company is in the process of merging with Russian outdoor advertising giant Russ, a deal that has the Kremlin’s blessing but that her husband Vladislav called a “huge mistake”.

In July, the leader of Russia’s Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, denounced the deal as a “blatant and brazen” corporate raid and vowed to put a stop to it, after meeting with Vladislav in person.

By: Agence France-Presse

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