The purpose of this article is to inform readers of Viktor Bout’s financial situation. Viktor Bout, or Viktor Anatolyevich Bout to give him his full name, is a Russian armaments dealer. Viktor Bout is suspected of supplying weaponry to oppressive governments and terrorist organisations around the world. In 2008, he was apprehended in Thailand, and in 2010, he was extradited to the USA.
Without asking any questions, they began selling firearms to everyone who could afford them. Quickly being known as one of the most trustworthy arms dealers in the world, Viktor Bout’s clientele includes rebel groups, tyrants, and terrorist organisations. His narrative serves as a reminder of the consequences for those who profit from selling illicit weapons.
See this article for details on Viktor Bout’s wealth, Career and so on. You should thus read this entire essay.
Viktor Bout Net Worth 2023
As of Septemeber, Russian arms trader Viktor Bout, who, in 2023, is projected to be worth $50 million but whose fortune has steadily declined over the course of several decades, particularly the 1980s and 1990s. Lived in the Soviet Union for a long time.
The allegations also state that he utilised his airline businesses to move billions of dollars worth of weapons from Eastern Europe to the Middle East and Africa. He has gained notoriety for his role in arming dictatorships and other rebel organisations. On January 13, 1967, he entered the world in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
The Soviet Army in Afghanistan hired him as a translator to begin his professional life. U.S. authorities detained Viktor Bout in 2010 on allegations of conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists after he had created his own air cargo company and delivered weapons to customers all over the world. Viktor Bout is presently incarcerated in the United States pending trial.
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Assets Viktor Bout
Authorities took several of Viktor Bout’s possessions once he was arrested. This included his planes, hotels, and enterprises. Authorities confiscated several of Bout’s planes, including Boeing 727s and 737s, because of his reputation as the operator of an aviation fleet used by Bout to carry weaponry and other illegal commodities.
Luxury Moscow hotel Radisson Slavyanskaya, which belonged to Viktor Bout and was confiscated by the Russian government in 2010, was eventually sold to the Azerbaijani national oil corporation SOCAR. Ilyushin Finance Company and an aviation cess are just two of the cargo enterprises that Viktor Bout runs.
All of these businesses were likewise confiscated by the authorities. The authorities also froze his many bank accounts located all over the world. To finance his criminal operations, the US government claims Viktor Bout used these accounts.
Bout also owned real estate in Russia, including a Moscow flat, and property in Thailand, where the police seized his residence. His fortune was likely in the multi-millions. Authorities have a hard time recovering Viktor Bout’s assets because most of them are likely stashed in offshore accounts and other undisclosed locations.
Military Service
Bout served in the Soviet military after completing studies at the Military Institute of Foreign Languages. He also learned Portuguese, Persian, Arabic, English, and French in addition to Russian during his education. Due to his linguistic versatility, Bout reportedly worked as a translator for the Soviet military. After the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1991, he was supposedly let go.
Professional Origins
After leaving the military, Bout worked in a variety of fields, with descriptions varying from source to source. His website claims that he started an Angola-based air cargo company under the name Air Cess.
The United States, France, and the United Nations were all served by the company. Bout began shipping supplies to Afghanistan’s pre-Taliban administration in 1994. Other accounts place Bout in the roles of GRU major, KGB agent, and Soviet Air Forces officer.
Arms Trafficking
It is believed that between 1996 and 1998, Bout smuggled a wide variety of weaponry into Africa, possibly with the intention of supplying UNITA during the Angolan Civil War. He was also accused of arming Liberian warlord Charles Taylor during that country’s first civil war. During the Yugoslav Wars, Bout was also accused of trafficking weaponry.
Bout and his partner Richard Chichakli set up a phoney airline in Tajikistan in 2004 to launder money. During this time, he allegedly transported surface-to-air missiles to Kenya for use in an attack on an Israeli aircraft and supplied armaments to many factions across Africa.
Bout was said to have a large commercial involvement in Libya, among other things. Authorities never were able to build a solid case against him for arms smuggling in Africa because he was continually on the move, operating various firms, and frequently re-registering his aircraft.
Extradition and Arrest
After being accused of document forgery in the Central African Republic in 2000, Bout was found guilty in his absence. Two years later, Belgian authorities charged Bout with money laundering and issued an Interpol red alert for his arrest. However because Bout had no permanent place to live, the lawsuit was dropped because it couldn’t be pursued in a timely manner.
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In the summer of 2004, an Executive Order placed a freeze on Bout’s U.S. assets. The Drug Enforcement Administration conducted a sting operation to catch Bout in the beginning of 2008. After the US issued an Interpol red alert for him, he was detained in Bangkok, Thailand. An extradition hearing was held in Bangkok later that year.
Although the Bangkok Criminal Court found in Bout’s favour in August 2009, the United States successfully appealed the verdict the following year. Consequently, Bout was handed over to American authorities in late 2010. The Russian government reacted angrily, saying the extradition was unconstitutional and driven by politics. In response, the Russian government has sanctioned any individuals engaged in the extradition.
Conviction and prosecution
After his capture in Thailand’s capital, Washington, D.C. slapped Bout with three counts of conspiracy: the murder of US residents and officials; material support for a foreign terrorist organisation; and delivery of anti-aircraft missiles. He faced additional charges at the beginning of 2010. Finally, in November 2011, a federal court in Manhattan found Bout guilty. He received a 25-year prison term in April of the following year.
Brittney Griner Exchange
Reports surfaced in July 2022 that Russia had been given Bout by the Biden administration in return for the freedom of WNBA star Brittney Griner, who was being detained on drug use charges. This swap finally materialised on December 8th, 2022.
In the Media
Several works of media have been influenced by or centred around Bout. In 2005, he was the subject of the third chapter of Nick Kochan’s book, “The Washing Machine.” The crime thriller “Lord of War,” starring Nicolas Cage as a global armaments trafficker, was inspired by Bout the same year. The 2014 documentary “The Notorious Mr Bout” focused on Bout, and so did episodes of “Manhunt: Kill or Capture” and “Damian Lewis: Spy Wars.”
