Oil Billionaire Ian Lundin Risks Jail Sentence as Historic Trial on Sudan War Crimes Begins

(Bloomberg) -- The oil billionaire ex-owner of Lundin Oil AB will this week appear in Sweden’s biggest ever criminal prosecution over his alleged involvement in atrocities in Sudan to help further the company’s business in the war-torn region. 

Ian H. Lundin, former chairman and controlling owner of Lundin Oil, and Alex Schneiter, its ex-chief executive officer, are accused by Swedish prosecutors of complicity in war crimes in Sudan between 1999 and 2003. The trial at the Stockholm district court follows an almost 13-year investigation and is scheduled to last two-and-a-half years. 

Both Lundin and Schneiter deny all the allegations.

“No other trial has been close to being as time-consuming,” Thomas Bodstrom, a lawyer representing a group of Sudanese in the prosecution, said in an email. The two men risk jail terms if found guilty. 

The company, which sold its oil and gas business in 2022 and changed its name to Orrön Energy AB, is separately facing a confiscation order of 2.4 billion Swedish kronor ($218 million) over the allegations.

The case will probe Lundin’s presence in an area of South Sudan known as Block 5A, where Sudanese armed forces led military operations to take control of the area and ease the way for Lundin Oil’s exploration, the prosecutors argued. 

They started the investigation in 2010 after a report from the European Coalition on Oil in Sudan found that 12,000 people died and 160,000 were forcibly displaced in Block 5A between 1997 and 2003.

“People were abused, raped and murdered. The rivers were poisoned, killing cattle and causing famine,” Bodstrom said. “The prosecutors have strong evidence that Lundin Oil, through its actions, shares the responsibility.”

According to the prosecution, the military systematically attacked civilians, through bombardments from transport planes, shooting civilians from helicopter gunships, abducting and plundering civilians and burning entire villages.

“The prosecution has no chance for success because the charges are based on allegations that are not supported by the investigation,” Torgny Wetterberg, Ian Lundin’s lawyer, said. “It’s a mystery why the prosecution is pursuing this case.” 

In a 2018 interview with Bloomberg, Lundin and Schneiter denied the accusations, saying neither they, nor anyone else at the company had knowledge of any crimes committed. They said the company’s presence helped the local population in an area haunted by a decade of battles among armed groups.

“We are facing Sweden’s longest trial ever. If you need that much time to show that you have a case, you don’t have a case,” Per E Samuelson, Schneiter’s lawyer said in an email. “There is no connection between any action Alexander Schneiter has taken and any combats in Sudan.”

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