A court in the Netherlands has refused to evict squatters from the Amsterdam home of Yandex founder Arkady Volozh, according to reports from the NRC and NL Times.
This indicates that the squatters have won the case brought against them by the Russian oligarch. Volozh claimed that the building had been undergoing major renovations since 2020. His lawyers said that the oligarch had purchased the house for personal use and intended to stay in it “to enjoy the beautiful city of Amsterdam.”
The court ruled that repairs to the building could lead to a “significant increase in value and, consequently, capital appreciation” for Volozh, which is prohibited by sanctions. The court also found it implausible that the Yandex founder was going to visit the Netherlands, as he was under EU sanctions. According to the squatters, Volozh had been planning to rent the house out. The court agreed with the assumption.
The Yandex founder's house was occupied by squatters on October 31. The activists said they were “against war, against the greed of oligarchs and billionaires and against capitalist parasites.” The group hung banners from the home’s balcony with the following slogan: “Against War and Capitalism.” One banner was written in Russian, reading “Yandex + FSB = ❤️.”