Michael Afremov, the co-founder of AGA Medical who had a famous falling out with the company's other founders, has sued a Pennsylvania resident who he says snookered him into investing $2.2 million into a fraudulent casino development scheme.
In Armenia.
In the complaint, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Afremov admits that he invested the money without ever seeing the land or visiting Armenia. Afremov said he met the defendant, Artur Jarayan, in 2005, when he was looking to invest in fine silver pieces made in Russia.
According to the complaint, the land in question was actually worth only $150,000 at the time of the purchase, and the Armenian government never approved gambling in that region of the country.
Jarayan, who has not filed a response to Afremov's suit, could not be reached for comment. The U.S. phone number listed on his website , where his first name is spelled Arthur, is no longer in service. The contact information now includes an Armenian phone number.
