There are some things that money cannot buy, and freedom is one of them according to a Forbes magazine list of billionaire convicts and inmates.
The list presents 11 individuals who are or have been ranked among the world's richest, but have also spent time in prison or on the run.
The list includes two Russians: Former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky and his business partner Platon Lebedev. Khodorkovsky topped the Forbes list of richest Russians in 2004 with an estimated net worth of $15 billion.
Khodorkovsky and Lebedev were arrested in 2005 and are serving an eight-year sentence for fraud and tax evasion. They are now also accused of stealing 350 million tons of oil. Both men deny the charges and claim investigations against them are politically motivated.
The list includes billionaire convicts from all corners of the globe. Most recently convicted are Chinese tycoon Wong Kwong Yu, sentenced last week to 14 years in jail for insider trading and bribery, and former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was charged with terrorism just this week. Thaksin has faced charges in Thailand before but has never been imprisoned since he has reportedly fled to Dubai.
Other wanted billionaires include Joaquim Guzman Loera, who has been on the run for nine years after escaping from jail in a laundry cart, and Turkish Cem Uzan, reportedly avoiding his 21-year prison sentence in exile in France.
NEW YORK, May 29 (RIA Novosti)
