UK: Prince Andrew sells Queen's gift to controversial oligarchs

Prince Andrew sells his run-down home to an oligarch from Kazakhstan. It flattens the property – now there is a luxury house there.

London – Scandal-Royal Andrew and his former home Sunninghill are back in the headlines. In 2007, the British prince sold the property to the Kazakh real estate mogul Timur Kulibayev. The spice thing about it, however, was the price for which Andrew sold the rundown house that was once a wedding present from the Queen to him. According to the Daily Beast, Kulibayev transferred 15 million pounds to Prince Andrew for the neglected property – the real estate expert even paid three million pounds more than asked.

After Andrew had previously failed to sell the property for the asking price for several years, rumors began to spread that Kulibayev paid this exaggerated price only to gain influence among the British elite. Allegations that the Royal of course rejected. According to him, the award merely demonstrated his ability to be an excellent businessman.

Royal Prince Andrew sells old home: oligarch builds luxury six-bedroom mansion

Timur Kulibayev razed the house – several years of construction followed. But now piquant new pictures have appeared in the British newspaper Daily Mail showing the former home of Prince Andrew – the royal estate is no longer recognizable. The Daily Mail reports a total of six bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms, extensive glass balconies, huge French doors and an almost 25 meter long pool. A fitness studio with steam, ice and sauna rooms, a playroom and a guest bedroom will also be located on the ground floor of the building.

Luxury that Timur Kulibayev and his wife can easily afford. The two are valued at $ 3 million each, according to Forbes. In addition, thanks to his wife and business partner Dinara (daughter of the former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev), the Mogul from Kazakhstan has excellent political ties. But as is so often the case, the real estate mogul is not entirely undisputed. The British daily Financial Times published an investigation in December last year that Kulibayev was profiting from a multi-billion dollar pipeline project through Central Asia and China – his lawyers vehemently deny the allegations.

Prince Andrew: Goose hunting and scandals

But how do Prince Andrew and the oligarch know each other? According to the Daily Beast, the two first met through Kazakhstani-born businesswoman Goga Ashkenazi. The supporter Prince Andrews has a total of two children together with Timur Kulibayev from 2007 and 2012 – although the oligarch was already married to his current wife Dinara at that time. Ashkenazi emphasized in an interview with the Financial Times that the overpriced price for Andrew’s property was simply a result of good manners. “I introduced the two of them to each other, so what? I am not a broker. All this speculation about the price – I don’t think you wanted to haggle with a royal. “

Andrew’s friendship with Kulibayev eventually led to his acquaintance with then-President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Narzabayev – with whom the British royal reportedly frequently went goose hunts in the years that followed. A pastime that luckily blended with Prince Andrew’s former position as the wandering ambassador of British trade. However, proven ties to the late scandal US investment banker Jeffrey Epstein forced Prince Andrew to give up his political role.

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British Royal Prince Andrew: Relations with Kazakhstan for multi-million dollar deals

But that’s not all the scandals: In 2016, the Daily Mail also published indications that Andrew wanted to take advantage of his good relations with the Kazakh elite to get the right money – according to the report, the royal should have waved almost four million pounds in commission when he was a Greek Wastewater company wanted to help a deal in Kazakhstan.

Since then, the scandal-ridden royal has fallen seriously out of favor – he lost public funding, was kicked out of his Buckingham Palace office and lost patronage. Given these circumstances, Timur Kulibayev would certainly not be to blame if Prince Andrew’s invitation to the inauguration of the new estate were lost by accident. (Jan Lucas Frenger)

List of rubric lists: © dpa / Swen Pförtner