Yukos chief refuses to leave London

The finance chief of Russia’s embattled oil giant Yukos is refusing to return to Moscow from London after Russian prosecutors summoned him for questioning.

American Bruce Misamore came to London along with Yukos chief executive Steven Theede and other members of the company’s six man management board for a meeting earlier this week.

He said prosecutors had called him in for questioning yesterday.

“I was going to travel back yesterday but had information that there was potential that they could bring charges against me,” Misamore said.

“Management hasn’t abandoned the company – we are tying to find out what the situation is,” he said. “If there’s no issue with respect to being in Moscow in terms of threats of arrest then the management will be in Moscow.”

The prosecutor’s actions come at a time when the government is ratcheting up the pressure on Russia’s biggest oil producer, which is struggling to pay down a multibillion pound tax bill.