For Ovik Mkrtchyan, the lawsuit he has brought with Gor Investment against Straife is not only about money. It is also about reputation, family harm and what he describes as an effort to bring transparency to an alleged campaign that damaged his business and placed “at least thousands of false publications online.”
In a statement, Mkrtchyan said: “The events described in the complaint caused profound and lasting harms to me and my family that no amount of money can fully repair. In addition, the ongoing smear campaign against me has now placed at least thousands of false publications online in an effort to cause further harm. By seeking justice in the courts, I hope to bring appropriate transparency to what happened and to ensure that others do not suffer in the way that we did.”
Mkrtchyan added: “I stand behind the lawsuit and there is nothing I wish to add to the detailed complaint, as those matters will be addressed through the legal process.”
The complaint, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, names Straife, a corporate intelligence firm with a Washington presence; its chief executive, Joseph Fleming; and Stephen Payne, a Washington lobbyist who, according to the complaint, has marketed his Washington connections and experience working in the George W. Bush White House. The plaintiffs bring claims including defamation, tortious interference, injurious falsehood and civil conspiracy.
At the heart of the case is Mkrtchyan’s allegation that people he once dealt with as advisers or associates later helped his adversaries damage him. According to the complaint, Straife and Fleming advised Mkrtchyan and Gor from 2022 on sensitive strategic and risk matters, receiving more than $100,000 in fees. Payne, who allegedly worked with Mkrtchyan and his companies from around 2016, is said to have introduced him to Fleming and Straife.
According to the complaint, the dispute arose from what the plaintiffs describe as a sanctions-related demand. The complaint alleges that Uzbek businessman Ulugbek Shadmanov and his team demanded that Mkrtchyan use his US relationships to help place two Uzbek nationals, Dmitry Lee and Komil Allamjonov, on the US sanctions list in order to prompt their prosecution in Uzbekistan. Mkrtchyan claims he refused, saying he viewed the demand as unlawful.
The plaintiffs allege that the consequences were severe. After the refusal, the complaint says Shadmanov began what the plaintiffs characterise as a campaign of retaliation. The complaint alleges that Mkrtchyan’s projects in Uzbekistan stalled, official support weakened and counterparties became reluctant to proceed.
In January 2024, according to the complaint, Mkrtchyan and his daughter were detained by officers of Uzbekistan’s State Security Service. His daughter was released, but he remained in detention for several months. The complaint alleges he was confined in harsh conditions, repeatedly interrogated, denied access to medication and pressured to confess to crimes he denied. He was released on April 12, 2024, and the complaint says official records confirm he was cleared of all charges.
The lawsuit says the damage continued after his release. According to the complaint, Straife and Fleming had proposed a course of action to secure Mkrtchyan’s release that Gor rejected on legal grounds. After the relationship ended, the plaintiffs allege Straife and Fleming agreed to assist Shadmanov and United Cement Group, or UCG, in interfering with Mkrtchyan’s projects, contracts and reputation.
One of the most detailed allegations involves an unsigned multi-page report titled “Report on the Nefarious Activities of Uktam Aripov.” The complaint alleges Straife and Fleming prepared the document, which focused on Aripov, an associate of Mkrtchyan, but also included allegations about Mkrtchyan and his wider network. The plaintiffs allege the report was left unsigned in order to conceal Straife’s and Fleming’s involvement in preparing it.
According to the complaint, former US ambassador Stephen Akard later sent the report, together with a cover letter, to Uzbekistan’s president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, and Uzbekistan’s ambassador in Washington, Furqat Sidikov, on August 16, 2024. The plaintiffs allege this placed damaging claims before senior Uzbek officials while obscuring Straife’s role in preparing the material.
The complaint places particular emphasis on Payne’s alleged role. According to the complaint, in April 2024, while Mkrtchyan was detained, Payne wrote in support of his release, attesting to his innocence and blaming Shadmanov and UCG. The complaint says Payne later reversed course after Fleming approached him and persuaded him to change his position.
The plaintiffs allege Payne acted at Fleming’s and UCG’s direction when he sent an August 23, 2024 letter retracting his earlier support. According to the complaint, that letter set out allegations against Mkrtchyan that included references to purported links to Russian organised crime, extortion and unethical conduct—allegations Mkrtchyan denies and which the complaint describes as false.
The complaint alleges Payne worked with Fleming to draft the letter, copied Fleming on related correspondence, requested confidentiality and separately contacted Ambassador Sidikov in Washington in connection with the letter. The plaintiffs allege that Payne’s reversal was, in their characterisation, connected to subsequent lobbying and consulting arrangements.
The complaint also alleges that Payne later provided information about Mkrtchyan, Gor and Aripov to a journalist, with the aim, the plaintiffs say, of encouraging publication of material aligned with the August 2024 letter and the Straife report. The complaint states that the journalist responded sceptically to one of the items Payne had sent.
For Mkrtchyan and Gor, the complaint alleges that the reputational campaign had commercial consequences. The complaint says the defendants’ alleged conduct helped disrupt major projects and damage relationships involving companies including BASF, CC7 and CITIC. The plaintiffs claim CITIC had indicated a willingness to invest more than $1.5 billion in one of the projects and that total losses exceed $1 billion.
The lawsuit also points to a later retraction. On October 29, 2025, Akard and his firm wrote to Uzbekistan’s president and ambassador retracting the August 2024 letter and report. According to the complaint, Akard said the material had been sent at UCG’s request, that the report had been prepared for UCG by Straife, and that neither he nor his firm had independently verified or could substantiate the allegations.
The allegations concerning Payne also come against the backdrop of a separate arbitration involving NRCO Engineering S.A., a company owned by Mkrtchyan, Payne and Linden Energy. In a May 1, 2026 Final Award, an ICDR arbitrator found in NRCO’s favour, and NRCO has petitioned the Southern District of Texas to confirm the award and enter judgment for more than $2.19 million.
In the award, the arbitrator examined Payne’s August 2024 letter to the President of Uzbekistan, in which Payne retracted his earlier letter supporting Mkrtchyan. The award states that the August letter included allegations against Mkrtchyan and Aripov, including alleged ties to Russian organised crime, threats and extortion. The arbitrator found that Payne and Logan Somera, who the award says assisted in drafting the letter, did not produce credible evidence supporting the assertions in the August retraction letter. The award also found that Payne actively attempted to conceal the existence of the letter from Mkrtchyan and Aripov.
The allegations in the D.C. complaint remain unproven. The defendants will have the opportunity to contest the complaint, challenge the plaintiffs’ account, and present their own evidence. The separate NRCO arbitration award has already made findings against Payne and Linden in a different dispute, but it does not determine the defendants’ liability in the D.C. proceedings.
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Ovik Mkrtchyan Says Lawsuit Is About Clearing His Name After Alleged Reputational Campaign