200 Forced Out at Kemerovo Company, Owner Allegedly Flees to Dubai
Employees of the large Kemerovo technical equipment sales company «Center of Technical Equipment» (CTO) told the editorial office of NGS42.RU on Tuesday, January 27, that they were allegedly forced by threats to write voluntary resignation letters, and the owner of the company left for Dubai with the money.
According to the workers, on January 23, the sales director demanded that almost 200 employees write voluntary resignation letters. Under pressure from the security service, which allegedly threatened the workers with persecution if they made a fuss in the media, managers, the call center, and the service department signed the papers.
‘They said that in case of refusal we would get nothing, not even our salary, because the company«s accounts would be frozen any day. Many have mortgages, loans, and some were just scared by the pressure from the security service, where former police officers work,’ said the publication»s interlocutor.
Another now former employee said that as an argument, they were given information about the company«s allegedly large debts.
‘They said that we owe the state 15 billion rubles (approximately $150 million at current rates) in taxes, but where such debts came from — no one explained,’ one of our interlocutors conveyed the words of the sales director.
Meanwhile, NGS.42 found out that, according to the Kontur.Focus service, there is indeed a tax debt for 2025, but it amounts to 29.3 million rubles (approximately $293,000 at current rates).
As the former workers told, no one expected a crisis: the company closed the year with good financial indicators, and the management organized a lavish New Year«s corporate party.
‘In general, we think they are now firing everyone like this, and there will be no bankruptcy. Mar«yanov simply decided to save on severance payments in this way,’ shared another employee.
Also, the company«s warehouse workers reported that the equipment handed over to them for service is standing disassembled and not being put in order due to the cessation of spare parts purchases. Some customers have been waiting for repairs for four months.
Moreover, according to the dismissed employees, Ivan Mar«yanov is no longer in Russia, he moved to Dubai, and his mother-in-law, who officially works at CTO as an accountant, is running the business. At the same time, the entrepreneur»s wife, judging by social networks, has long been living in the UAE, from where she regularly posts photos on social networks.
We contacted the businessman, but he denied everything and warned that spreading allegedly false information would lead to legal prosecution.
Update at 13:00
The company«s lawyer said that employees were indeed told that the organization has problems with equipment supplies against the backdrop of the global situation, but no one forced them to quit.
‘People were told that they have the right to decide what to do. We are now finding out how the information was conveyed to the employees,’ said a representative of CTO LLC.
She added that bankruptcy is not planned.
We tried to contact the head of the analytical work department of the Kuzbass labor inspection, Olga Pavlova, but the work phone did not answer. The editorial office of NGS42.RU sent a request to the Kuzbass labor inspection.
According to the Kontur.Focus service, CTO LLC was founded in 2013 by Ivan Sergeyevich Mar«yanov. He is also the general director of the company. Profit has been steadily growing in recent years. If the company closed 2023 with an indicator of just over 9 billion rubles (approximately $90 million at current rates), then 2024 — 9 billion 760 million rubles (approximately $97.6 million at current rates). Net revenue at the end of 2024 amounted to 45.2 million rubles (approximately $452,000 at current rates). In 2025, the company won two government procurement contracts worth about 30 million rubles (approximately $300,000 at current rates).
