Russian-Uzbek businessman Alisher Usmanov has won another legal victory in his campaign to clear his name after German newspaper Münchner Merkur was ordered to retract a series of articles that formed the basis for investigations in Germany and for EU sanctions against him and his sister.

The newspaper, which was part of an investigative team looking into Usmanov’s case, signed three new cease-and-desist orders and deleted fifteen related articles concerning Usmanov.

The Munich-based paper, one of Bavaria’s most-read publications, has now signed eight cease-and-desist orders, reversing dozens of allegations made between March and November 2022, according to Usmanov’s representative. The move follows a lengthy legal battle by Usmanov’s lawyers and increasing pressure on German prosecutors to justify their evidence in a long running investigation and legal saga.

Some of the deleted articles were used by German authorities to launch preliminary investigations into Usmanov and were also cited in documents sent to the EU Council to justify sanctions against him and his sister Gulbakhor Ismailova. As Politico reported, much of the evidence presented to justify sanctions on Russians accused of close ties with the Kremlin has been slipshod or mere hearsay.

Usmanov has been trying to hold newspapers to account with a series of legal challenges. The latest win against media outlets that published critical reports about him and his sister comes just weeks after the EU removed Ismailova from its sanctions list. Sanctions against his other sister, Saodat Narzieva, were lifted in 2022, but Usmanov remains under sanctions, which he claims are unfair. Usmanov spends most of his time in his country of birth, Uzbekistan.

The lifting of sanctions on Usmanov’s sisters has raised broader concerns about the role of journalism, politics and legal oversight in high-profile sanctions across Europe, especially as the EU’s system for listing individuals faces growing legal challenges from businesspeople targeted since the war in Ukraine began.

The disputed articles in Münchner Merkur claimed that Usmanov secretly owned luxury properties and vehicles across Europe, including homes near Bavaria’s Lake Tegernsee, a mansion in Surrey in the UK and real estate in Croatia, Latvia, Sardinia and London, allegedly bought through offshore networks. They also accused his sisters of helping to manage and lease these assets through trusts. Usmanov’s legal team has consistently denied the claims, which have now been officially retracted.

“All these allegations have been repeatedly refuted both in and out of court,” the press release said. “The properties referenced belong to irrevocable discretionary trusts managed by independent trustees, with no ownership or control by Mr. Usmanov or his relatives.”

Merkur’s retractions are part of a wider trend, as German and European media outlets have been rolling back similar reports since 2023. Usmanov’s legal team says more than 40 cease-and-desist orders have been signed, and about nine court rulings have confirmed he does not own the properties in question.

A key turning point came in November 2024, when the Frankfurt Public Prosecutor’s Office dropped a money-laundering case against Usmanov after nearly two and a half years of investigation. That decision followed a ruling by the Frankfurt Regional Court, which found that the searches conducted during the probe were unlawful.

Still, German prosecutors have not closed a separate tax case, which depends on whether Usmanov was a tax resident in Germany – a claim his legal team says has no basis.

Media lawyer Joachim Steinhöfel, who represents Usmanov, said that “it is highly unusual for an important regional newspaper to delete 15 of its articles after legal action”.

“Mr. Usmanov was a victim of this attack on truth and decency, when a journalist serially used the tired trope of Russian, rich and guilty. For a judge to sign a search warrant, as happened in the Usmanov case, and refer to a newspaper article that has now been deleted, is simply ridiculous,” Steinhöfel said.