Zambia Deports Third Manager in Dispute Over Emerald Mine

LUSAKA (Capital Markets in Africa) – Zambia deported another of Israeli diamond billionaire Lev Leviev’s managers at an emerald mine where he is embroiled in a $51 million dispute, Leviev’s local lawyer said.

Immigration officials took Sergey Kuznetsov, a Russian who was Leviev’s only remaining manager at the operation and was in charge of the vault where the gems were stored, to the airport and put him on a plane, lawyer Dickson Jere said by phone. Two other of Leviev’s managers in Zambia were deported in 2017.

Leviev jointly owns Gemcanton Investment Holdings in the southern African nation, and has been involved in legal battles with the other owner, Abdoulaye Ndiaye, a naturalized Zambian originally from Senegal, for more than a year. Leviev’s company won a worldwide asset freeze against Ndiaye in October.

Home Affairs Minister Stephen Kampyongo said by phone he hadn’t signed any deportation order and referred queries to the Immigration department. A spokesman for the department said he wasn’t aware of the matter.

Source: Bloomberg Business News