Russian oil manager arrested on fraud charge

A government relations manager at British-Russian oil venture TNK-BP has been arrested on suspicion of fraud, Russian police said today.

The Interior Ministry said in a statement that the unidentified executive is suspected of defrauding two businessmen by promising them high-ranking posts in the Russian government.

TNK-BP, Russia’s third-largest oil producer, is owned by BP and a consortium of Russian billionaires on a parity basis.

In June, BP said it intended to sell its stake in the company, and state-owned Rosneft is the most likely buyer. A deal could be announced as early as today.

TNK-BP was not available for comment.