Viaro CEO accused of forging documents in UK lawsuit to steal millions

Former employer of the CEO of an independent British Oil Producer who is purchasing North Sea assets from Shell and Exxon Mobil, is suing him for allegedly falsifying documents in order to steal substantial amounts.

Court documents show that Viaro Energy's CEO Francesco Mazzagatti has been accused of involvement in the misappropriation at least of 143.8 million euro ($151.5 millions) by Singapore-based Alliance Petrochemical Investment.

The suit, first reported in the Financial Times, was filed by London's High Court at the end of August.

Mazzagatti denies all allegations. He and Francesco Dixit Dominus (Viaro's chief finance officer) have written a defence in which they deny any misappropriation of funds.

In a press release, a spokesperson for Viaro Energy stated: "Mr Mazzagatti & Mr Dixit dominus categorically reject these fabricated allegations."

The spokesperson said: "Mr Mazzagatti is looking forward to debunking these allegations and bringing a substantive counterclaim."

Viaro Energy announced in July it would purchase Shell and Exxon’s Southern North Sea assets and take full ownership of one the largest and most productive gas portfolios on UK Continental Shelf.

Viaro purchased RockRose Energy by 2020. Since then, it has completed several other deals on the British and Dutch North Sea. According to its website, the company produces 30,000 barrels equivalent of oil per day and holds interests in more than 30 fields.

Alliance Petrochemical Investment claims in its lawsuit that there is "credible evidence" that Mr Mazzagatti has used a portion of the misappropriated money to purchase a majority stake in RockRose Energy.

In their written defense, Mazzagatti & Dixit Dominus deny this allegation. The defendants also claim that the allegations are part of separate litigation in England, Italy and are being defended by them.

(source: Reuters)