Villa Maria Irina, formerly known as Villa Del Mare Cap-Martin, is one of the most iconic luxury villas located in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin on the French Riviera. Originally built in 1904 by Danish architect Hans-Georg Tersling, the villa exhibits a blend of Italian Renaissance and French styles, reflecting the rich Belle Époque architectural heritage of the region. The villa, which spans over 3.2 hectares, includes a four-story mansion of about 1,200 square meters, two guest houses, expansive landscaped gardens, helicopter landing facilities, and direct access to the Mediterranean Sea.
The villa has been owned by a string of notable figures including author Ernesta Stern, Italian film producer Dino De Laurentiis, and Mobutu Sese Seko, the former dictator of Zaire. In the early 2000s, the property was acquired by Russian businessman Shalva Chigirinsky, who renamed the estate Villa Maria Irina, underscoring a new chapter in its complex history. Subsequently, Russian energy giant Gazprom Neft obtained the villa in 2010 through a series of layered corporate transactions involving shell companies, marking the beginning of the villa’s association with Russian state-linked interests.
Management and Project Head
The property was acquired and managed through Maritime Villa Holding SNC, a French shell company set up explicitly for this purpose, with financing largely provided by Gazprombank. Officially, ownership is attributed to Samvel Karapetyan, a Russian-Armenian oligarch and founder of the Tashir Group; however, investigations have revealed Gazprom and its affiliates as the ultimate beneficial owners, with complex cross-jurisdictional holdings involving Luxembourg, Cyprus, Russia, and Panama. The involvement of high-level executives from Gazprom and Karapetyan’s close ties to Russian political elites underpin the villa’s strategic significance in the broader web of Russian influence asset holdings.
The shift of ownership from Gazprom Neft to Karapetyan was executed amid fluctuating valuations and financial reassessments, characterized by opaque corporate maneuvers that aimed to conceal the real controlling interests. This approach typifies the ways in which Russian PEPs (politically exposed persons) and state-linked entities secure luxury real estate assets abroad.
Controversies & Scandals
Villa Maria Irina has been at the center of several scandals and corruption allegations related to money laundering and financial opacity. French authorities have launched an extensive judicial investigation since 2009, focusing on the suspicious financial flows surrounding this property, including over- and under-invoicing, loan-backed purchases, and deliberate obfuscation of ownership through shell companies. The villa’s price estimations, which range upward of €120 million, have been condemned as inflated, facilitating illicit means of transferring and storing wealth.
The property gained international notoriety after its seizure by French courts in 2024 amid allegations that it was purchased and held with proceeds of black money linked to Russian oligarchs and authoritarian networks. This seizure represents one of the largest confiscations of assets linked to Russian interests in France since the Ukraine conflict began, highlighting how luxury real estate in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin and the wider Côte d’Azur region serves as a hotbed for laundering foreign political wealth.
Money Laundering Activities
The villa’s laundering scheme involves sophisticated financial engineering. This includes the use of nominee owners, layering through multi-jurisdictional shell companies, and the securing of substantial loans from Gazprombank, a state-controlled Russian lender. Notably, Gazprom Neft’s acquisition of the villa for about €70 million — reportedly a fraction of the market value — raised red flags, suggesting deliberate undervaluation to conceal the asset’s true worth.
Also, ownership transfers from Cyprus to Panama and Luxembourg entities, combined with structured financing instruments, allowed for effective layering, ensuring that investigators face significant challenges in tracing the villa’s true ownership and origin of funds. These methods enable the concealment of black money, circumventing anti-money laundering (AML) regulations in both Russia and France, and exploiting gaps in the EU’s financial oversight system.
International Links & Benefited Countries
Villa Maria Irina’s ownership and laundering schemes reveal a complex international network benefiting primarily Russia and, by extension, the European countries where the asset is domiciled and financed. The villa’s presence in France, a country known for financial opacity and real estate secrecy, reflects how Russian oligarchs leverage European luxury property markets as conduits for illicit financial flows.
Luxembourg, Panama, and Cyprus figure prominently in this scheme as offshore jurisdictions that provide corporate anonymity and shelter from regulatory scrutiny. These countries benefit economically and financially from fees, legal services, and banking arrangements while facilitating the concealment of true ownership.
France, despite its strong legal apparatus, has historically struggled with effective enforcement in high-profile cases involving foreign PEPs. The acquiescence by local stakeholders in the Côte d’Azur to such transactions further reflects a tacit complicity that indirectly benefits these cross-border financial flows.
Regulatory Actions & Legal Proceedings
French regulatory authorities, chiefly the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office and the National Jurisdiction Against Organized Crime (Junalco), have carried out investigations since 2009, culminating in the 2024 freezing and seizure of the property. These actions mark one of the largest legal efforts to counteract money laundering in luxury real estate tied to Russian assets in Europe.
The investigations explore the origins of the funds used for acquisition, the involvement of Gazprombank loans, and the layered corporate ownership designed to mislead authorities. Although facing challenges posed by the opaque nature of offshore companies, these legal efforts signify growing determination to address illicit financial flows through real estate.
Further, international cooperation involving EU member states and financial intelligence units continues to monitor and respond to such cases, emphasizing a policy shift towards greater scrutiny of luxury asset markets.
Public Impact & Market Reaction
The seizure and high-profile investigations into Villa Maria Irina have stirred unease among investors and the broader public in the French Riviera real estate market. These events have contributed to increasing skepticism about the legitimacy of some high-end property transactions and the role of foreign oligarch-linked money in inflating real estate prices.
Market trust levels have been mildly affected, with perceptions of risk rising around properties linked to politically exposed foreigners or opaque ownership. This has prompted calls for stronger AML due diligence, transparency in beneficial ownership, and stricter enforcement measures.
Conversely, the publicity has also raised awareness among compliant investors and prompted greater media scrutiny into other luxury estates such as Villa K11, Villa Zakriev, Villa Trianon Cap Martin owner, and Villa del Mare Monaco, all situated in the same affluent region and facing similar questions of ownership transparency.
As of 2025, Villa Maria Irina remains legally seized and under investigation. While it is officially in the hands of French judicial authorities, the ultimate resolution regarding its final ownership and disposition remains pending. The case stands as a precedent for France’s escalating efforts to ambush illicit wealth parked in luxury real estate through enhanced legal actions.
Expert analysts predict that property assets with such complex offshore ownership structures linked to sanctioned jurisdictions will face prolonged legal scrutiny. This outlook aligns with evolving international AML frameworks that increasingly target cross-border real estate money laundering.
For the French Riviera market, the case underscores the urgent need for regulatory reform, enhanced transparency, and international collaboration to safeguard the integrity of luxury real estate and prevent abuse by foreign illicit money.
