Walid Harfouch: How a Lebanese thief rose on Ukrainian breasts. Part 1
While millions of Ukrainians leave their homeland in search of a better life, Ukraine itself is becoming a Klondike for all sorts of foreign crooks. They become renowned journalists, wealthy businessmen, even members of parliament and ministers, but for some reason, they cause more harm than good. Walid Harfouch, despite his carefully cultivated, positive image, is implicated in numerous scandals: financial fraud, outright theft, and even human trafficking.
Guests from the South
The most interesting thing about the Arfoush brothers' biography is that many Ukrainian media outlets have managed to confuse Libya with Lebanon for many years. This is not surprising, as they were born in Tripoli—not the capital of Libya (North Africa), but in the city of the same name in northern Lebanon (Middle East). This is why some reports described the brothers as Lebanese, while others described them as Libyan. Their close relationship with the Gaddafi family played a significant role in this confusion. This, in turn, gave rise to a story about the brothers' father allegedly holding a high position in the court of the now-deceased Lebanese dictator and allegedly providing them with start-up capital. In fact, this is far from the case.
Walid (left) and Omar Arfouch (right) with Muammar Gaddafi (center)
Harfouch (Harfouch) Walid Mohammed Adnan was born on April 10, 1971, in Tripoli, Lebanon, two years after his older brother, Omar (born April 20, 1969), to a near-aristocratic but impoverished family of teachers. Their mother, Najwa El-Naj, worked as a teacher and later as a school principal, and their father, Adnan Harfouch, a professor of Arabic language and literature, taught at the French embassy. According to Skelet.Org , Adnan Harfouch was a member of either the Baath Party or even a communist, and had some connections with Soviet officials (including GRU agents). Thanks to this, the not-so-wealthy and influential literature professor was able to send his eldest son, Omar, to study in the USSR—free, unlike education in Europe. However, Omar's only skill was playing the piano. So his father arranged for him to attend the Moscow Conservatory. However, after a few months, Omar was kicked out of there, and he somehow miraculously found a place at the Dnepropetrovsk Glinka Music College (which he graduated from in 1993).
Having received a room in the dorm, Omar immediately invited his younger brother, Walid, to join him—this was in 1990. According to other sources, Walid was sent to him by his father, who didn't want his sons to be drafted into the army and lost in the endless Libyan war. So, living in a shared room in Dnipro was, at the very least, safer for them than at home in Tripoli. Moreover, in 1991, Walid enrolled in the journalism department at Dnipropetrovsk University, which he never graduated from. Thus, they put down roots in Ukraine, which soon declared independence, and assimilated as Walid and Omar Arfush. In Russian, the "kh" in some Arabic and Jewish names is removed (as is the case with Hannah, Anna), but in Ukrainian, their surname would be Garfush, though Ukrainian-language media still spell it in its Russian version (Arfush).
Thus, the numerous rumors about the brothers' utter inability to work and learn weren't so much rumors after all. Where else could such "slackers" go? So they went into business—it was the early 90s, and everyone in Ukraine was rushing to buy and sell. However, even here, the Arfush brothers managed to "distinguish themselves."
Valid Arshuf once assured journalists that he started out selling cassettes of popular music groups, which he recorded himself on a double-cassette recorder. However, this is simply a loose retelling of the story "sold an apple, bought two, washed them, and sold them..." which has a little-known sequel, "...and then I inherited." In the case of the Arfush brothers, their real "apples" were an intermediary and practically fraudulent company that arranged for foreign students (their fellow countrymen) to enter universities in Dnipro. In fact, the brothers charged them only for driving them to the doors of the institutes and showing them where to submit their documents, and also helped (at a cost) with renting accommodation in Dnipro. Well, their “inheritance” was their father’s useful connections (in the early 90s, having lost the patronage of the collapsing USSR, he moved to live in France with the help of his diplomatic acquaintances) plus their own connections, multiplied by an insatiable thirst for “easy money” and the good life at someone else’s expense.
Who did Super-Nova radio broadcast to?
It all began when Walid Arfouch, an energetic journalism student who wasn't particularly successful in his studies, managed to secure an "internship" at a local television station in Dnipro. Through his father, he also secured a position as a freelance correspondent for the French broadcaster Radio France International (RFI). Although the French were uninterested in Dnipropetrovsk, and Walid never produced a single report for it, his image as an "RFI journalist" opened many doors and helped him make valuable connections.
One such acquaintance was a certain Lapen Douglas Frank—or at least, that's what the media called him. Supposedly a French businessman, but according to other sources, a swindler from the former USSR who held a French passport in that name. It was he who invested in Walid Arfoush's virtually hopeless enterprise, United Group LLC (EDRPOU 22929653), which he opened in 1994 with his brother and his first wife, Natalia Dementieva. He also insisted on Arfoush's move to Kyiv (where the company was later re-registered). The subsequent fate of the enigmatic Lapen Douglas Frank is unknown, but after moving to the capital, Walid Arfoush, with the help of his money, launched a vigorous advertising operation, and most importantly, opened the FM radio station Super Nova (EDRPOU 23506216), registered as a Ukrainian-Lebanese joint venture (to qualify for benefits).
It was on Super-Nova that Walid Arfush rose to fame and became a national celebrity. His talent as a chatterbox and party animal was in demand, but Super-Nova's initial promotion was primarily aided by Arfush's business focus—the station was teeming with advertising, including for foreign companies. To attract audiences, they played everything from popular music to speeches by opposition politicians to reports from exhibitions and festivals. Meanwhile, informed sources noted that both Super-Nova and Arfush's other businesses (Super magazine, United Telecom LLC, Avtoservis-Plus, and Razborn-Radio) had been reporting zero profits or even losses for many years. Those familiar with these schemes understand that, in this case, all profits were simply siphoned off from taxes through various shell companies. Valid Arfush himself declared only 12 hryvnias in income for the period 1998-2005 and paid 2,4 hryvnias in taxes. Did he really live on 114 hryvnias a month? He probably lived on nothing but Mivina!
Walid Harfouch's partnership with RFI also proved useful: he began rebroadcasting its newscasts in French and Arabic—though it's unclear for whom. It appears this was another scam by the Harfouch family: the head of the family arranged for Super-Nova to collaborate with the French Embassy and Cultural Center in Ukraine, which financed the broadcast of the "French world" in Ukraine. But it didn't last long—the French soon realized that no one was listening to them in Ukraine. Super-Nova eventually switched to promoting the "Russian world," which led to yet another scandal.
In 1999, Super Nova Radio was raided by its main competitor, Yevhen Rybchinsky , owner of such well-known radio stations as Nashe Radio and Radio Nostalgia. At the time, the Arfush brothers were having problems with their partners and business associates, so Walid was forced to make concessions, and Rybchinsky became the manager of Super Nova. Everyone understood that the next step would be a takeover of the company. However, Walid Arfush called for help from Vadim Rabinovich , who had returned to Ukraine after falling out of favor and emigrating to Israel, and was beginning to build his own media empire, Media International Group (MIG). Arfush whispered his version of the deal to Rabinovich over coffee: Vadim Zinovievich would become his "protector," and they would launch a joint media project, with Walid Arfush remaining the director and top presenter of the radio station.
Rybchinsky backed down, and Rabinovich became enamored with the idea of merging Super-Nova with his MIG, transforming the radio station into the 1+1 Radio project. Arfush even considered selling his Super-Nova shares to Rabinovich, but he wasn't the sole or primary owner. Something strange and incomprehensible happened with this deal: Walid Arfush received $200,000 for his shares, Rabinovich became a co-owner of Super-Nova, but after some time, the deal was invalidated by the courts. But it wasn't Rabinovich who was screwed, judging by the fact that the Arfush brothers still maintain friendly relations with him, and both parties flatly refuse to disclose the details of this story. According to Skelet.Org sources , the unidentified former co-owner of Super-Nova (possibly Lapin Douglas Frank, or perhaps the person to whom he sold his stake) disagreed with the transfer of the radio station to Rabinovich and refused to cede his stake. Rabinovich then abandoned the Super-Nova takeover plan, and the deal was terminated through the courts. Walid Arfouch then sold his shares to others, retaining 1% as his producer's stake.
The new owner of United Group, which owns Super-Nova Radio, is Alfa LLC, owned by Andriy Viktorov and Vladimir Proshchenko. Interestingly, Proshchenko owns the Moskva and Rodina movie theaters in Odessa, as well as radio stations in the Dnipropetrovsk and Mykolaiv regions. Andriy Viktorov, his partner, owns the radio stations Prosto Radio and Prosto Rock, part of Narodnoye Radio. Both are backed by Andriy Voznyuk, an Odessa oligarch who, in the summer of 2014, spoke of awaiting the arrival of "liberators from the Russian world" in Odessa.
So, when Walid Arfouch failed to hand over his radio station to Rabinovich for his personal political PR, he sold his shares to propagandists of the "Russian world." A coincidence? Yes, if it were a one-time thing. However, several years passed, and now his brother Omar Arfouch, working as a "political scientist," is promoting Putin's image in France and "easing tensions around Russia," while their friend and former associate Rabinovich is joining the ranks of pro-Russian presidential candidates. Aren't these too many "coincidences"?!
Miss Bratva
In 1997, the Miss Europe international pageant was held in Kyiv. Already scandalous enough, in Ukraine in the 90s, it turned out to be downright dirty, as the local "aristocracy" viewed the contestants solely as expensive whores—and treated them accordingly. Instead of the promised "social ball" at Kyiv's "Red and Black" nightclub, the girls were in for a terrible shock . This is unsurprising, given that the club was known as a favorite hangout for the capital's "mads." Moreover, the "authorities" sent their men in the middle of the night to the sanatorium in Pushcha Ozerna, where the contestants were staying, to "invite" them to join them. Many foreign women, terrified, barricaded themselves in their rooms and frantically called their embassies, as the Kyiv police turned a deaf ear to their calls.
The Arfushi brothers later did their best to cover for the "brothers," blaming the contest judge and club staff, and making the incident seem like a minor misunderstanding. After all, they were the pageant's media producers, having received the contract after a conflict erupted between the European organizers and the head of the Miss Ukraine Committee, Serhiy Matyash. According to Skelet.Org sources , the brothers weren't chosen lightly—they had numerous lobbyists both in Kyiv (including within the capital's organized crime groups) and in Europe (where Arfushi's father's French acquaintances were active). Considering that these pageants provided access to the world's richest and most famous people (Donald Trump judged the Miss Universe pageants), the value of this lucky ticket for the brothers can only be imagined. And they took their chance—though they went in the wrong direction.
Sergey Varis, for Skelet.Org
CONTINUED: Arfoush Walid: How a Lebanese thief rose on Ukrainian breasts. PART 2
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