Former CIS LoL Player Likkrit Sanctioned by the US Amidst Ukraine Crisis
Former League of Legends pro player and owner of Russian esports organization CrowCrowd Kirill “Likkrit” Malofeyev has reportedly been sanctioned by the United States government due to the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine. On 20th April, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) revealed entities and individuals involved in attempts to evade sanctions imposed by the United States and its international partners on Russia. Among the list of individuals was Likkrit, who is listed as the son of Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeyev. Following this, he has stepped down as the owner of CrowCrowd.
Sanctions by the US Government
A press release by the U.S. Department of the Treasury said, “Today, OFAC also targeted a worldwide sanctions evasion and malign influence network led by Russian oligarch Konstantin Malofeyev.” The release stated that the Russia-based company, Tsargrad OOO (Tsargrad), owned by Malofeyev, is a cornerstone of his “broad malign influence network.”
A report by Escorenews said Konstantin Malofeyev has been “dedicated to Russian Orthodox Christianity and support of President Vladimir Putin.” He was put on the OFAC's list of sanctions in 2014 for “being responsible for or complicit in, or for having engaged in, actions or policies that threaten the peace, security, stability, sovereignty, or territorial integrity of Ukraine; and for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic.”
According to a report by Maiseports, US Attorney General Merric Garland reportedly disclosed that Malofeyev attempted “to circumvent the sanctions by using accomplices to surreptitiously acquire and run media outlets across Europe."
Likkrit also appeared in the latest list of sanctions by the Treasury of different entities and individuals suspected by the US government of helping Konstantin Malofeev to avoid the sanctions.
Russian national Kirill Konstantinovich Malofeyev (Kirill) is Malofeyev’s son and owns several Russia-based companies, including Limited Liability Company Vladeks Kholding (Vladeks Kholding), Limited Liability Company Vladeks (Vladeks), and Limited Liability Company Russian Digital Solutions (Rus.Digital). Malofeyev was involved in the creation of Vladeks, which was intended to be a cryptocurrency exchange project.”U.S. Department of the Treasury
Likkrit steps down from CrowCrowd as owner
Likkrit revealed on social networking site vk.com that he has left CrowCrowd. He wrote, “A small front-end announcement. Due to events, I am forced to leave CrowCrowd organization :(”
According to Fandom, Likkrit has been the owner and Team Strategic Director of CrowCrowd since 2019.
Likkrit was a League of Legends pro who rose to fame at Worlds 2016 alongside his team Albus Nox Luna, which made history by making it to the top eight in the tournament. He is a very famous player from the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region.
On 16th December 2017, Likkrit retired from the competitive League of Legends scene after he was suspended for six months by Riot Games. Currently, CrowCrowd fields teams in League of Legends, Wild Rift, and World of Warcraft (WoW) and competes in the CIS scene.
