Director of vodka factory claims ownership conflict resolved

The dispute began in May, when Kristall's board of directors elected Romanov as general director. Some board members objected, and a Moscow court ruled in July that the appointment was invalid, naming Svirskiy acting director. But Romanov and his guards occupied the production line in August, while Svirskiy was camped out in the head office. The court finally reversed itself on Sept. 29, ruling that Romanov was, in fact, the rightful director.

Romanov claims that the previous management _ for which Svirskiy served as chief accountant _ drove Kristall to the edge of bankruptcy. He said investigators were checking whether there had been criminal activity at Kristall, which is 51 percent owned by the government.

Svirskiy denied the accusations and rejected the latest court ruling. His exact whereabouts were unknown, though it appeared he had not left the factory grounds _ fearing that if he did, he wouldn't get back in. "This is a direct threat not only to the factory, but to the government," Svirskiy's lawyer, Yakov Mastinsky, told reporters. Mastinsky accused Romanov's guards of blocking everything from going in or out of the distillery, including finished vodka, and said production was grinding to a halt.

Kristall is one of Russia's approximately 180 vodka distilleries, and among the most famous. It makes the Stolichnaya brand, which is exported around the world, along with other, cheaper liquors that sell for the ruble equivalent of less than two dollars a bottle.

The conflict was only one of several recent incidents in which rival groups tried to settle ownership disputes with force. In September, armed men raided a chemical plant in the Ural Mountains to try to settle a dispute over who should run the enterprise.

(AP)