Meet Sergei Leontiev, the banker who had dreams of becoming a Russian Warren Buffett. The dream died when the Kremlin went after him for his connections to the opposition leader Alexei Navalny. He was forced to flee. The United States granted asylum to Leontiev, but now, in a three-part series for the Financial Times, reporters Courtney Weaver and Stefania Palma ask whether Leontiev’s narrative holds up. The pair uncover a shocking story that highlights the dynamics of today’s Russia and questions the Western narrative of good and evil. —Clara Molot