Filenews 22 August 2025 - by Fanis Makridis
For an imminent request for legal assistance to the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus from Ukraine, reports of Russian-language mass media speak.
The request they are announcing, according to what is stated in the reports, concerns the Russian-born businessman Dmitry Punin.
The well-known businessman served as president of the football club Karmiotissa FC, while companies of his interests are based in Cyprus and specifically in Limassol.
The relevant information was published in the last two days on a news platform channel on Telegram and on two other websites.
They present the Ukrainian authorities as investigating Mr. Punin's activities, because - according to the positions put forward - he allegedly serves Russia's interests at the expense of Ukraine and is involved in allegedly shadowy economic activities through Cyprus and a specific legal entity. In this context, they place the request that, as they say, will be made to the Cypriot authorities, but also to other European countries.
The Casino Case
The case for which Peinen is allegedly being investigated concerns the online casino "PIN-UP" which is also active in Ukraine. According to what was reported in reports, the Ukrainian authorities found out in the spring of 2024 that Ukrainian companies are connected to "PIN-UP".
The Ukrainians have the legal entity that controls the online casino serving Russian interests at the expense of their country. In fact, the position was formulated that Pyongyang is the businessman behind "PIN-UP" and that he uses straw men.
The issue came to the fore on May 25, when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky put into effect a decision of the National Security and Defense Council to impose sanctions on Russians connected to the PIN-UP casino.
In fact, Punin and two other people were given ten-year restrictive measures and an asset freeze.
All three are alleged, according to the reports, to be related to a Cypriot company, which acts as a parent structure for the management of the e-casino and the coordination of the related financial and operational activities.
As a news platform on Telegram notes, "in the context of the investigation, legal assistance is expected to be requested from the authorities of the Republic of Cyprus, in order to gather data on the action of the Cypriot company and its connections with other legal and natural persons. Kiev is also seeking cooperation with other EU countries."
Disproval
The CIREN (Cyprus Investigative Reporting Network) website had dealt with the case on June 20 last year. The publication referred to the Cypriot company that was allegedly linked to the online casino PIN-UP, but then sold its stake.
Punin's wife, Ms. Marina Ilina, participates in the administrative structure of this Cypriot corporate entity. The latter had been requested to be placed by CIREN by e-mail.
In her response, she denied any ties to the Russian government or that she contributed through the company to the Russian budget. In her written statement, she stressed the following: "Guruflow Team Ltd never made any payments to Pin-Up Ru LLC during the period of holding corporate rights in that entity, and Pin-Up Ru LLC did not pay taxes to the Russian Federation during the period that Guruflow Team Ltd held a share in its share capital.
