Jailed Russian oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky has been transferred to Moscow from a Siberia prison to await new charges of embezzlement and fraud, a city court spokeswoman said Tuesday, dpa reported.
The court hearings in the latest case against Kodorkovsky and his business partner at oil firm Yukos, Platon Lebedev are set to begin March 3, spokeswoman Anna Usachyova was quoted by news agency Ria-Novosti as saying.
Russian prosecutors say the two defrauded investors in Yukos out of 890 billion rubles (25 billion dollars). Lawyers for Khodorkovsky were quoted as saying the charges could extend his term by over 20 years.
The two men are awaiting trial at Moscow's Matrosskaya Tishina prison, according to Khodorkovsky's website.
Once Russia's richest man, Khodorkovsky, 45, was incarcerated in 2005 and is serving an eight-year sentence for fraud and tax evasion in 2005.
Many commentators see the case as a Kremlin coup to regain control over the lucrative energy sector and sideline Khodorkovsky as a potential political opponent.
Yukos was sold off in a state auction after it went bankrupt. A state-controlled firm bought most of the assets.
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