Bankers convicted in Switzerland over Putin money laundering
March 30, 2023
Four bankers have been convicted in Switzerland of having assisted a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin hide funds in bank accounts in the country.
The court found them guilty of failing to exercise the necessary oversight with regards to the accounts. They have been handed suspended jail sentences that carry with them fines of 741,000 Swiss francs ($809,000; €743,400).
The men, who were not identified under Swiss privacy norms, helped Sergey Roldugin deposit millions in discrete bank accounts between 2014 and 2016. The Swiss government has called Roldugin "Putin's wallet" in the past for his alleged money laundering for the Russian leader.
A concert cellist, he is also the godfather of Putin's eldest daughter.
All four defendants worked for Gazprombank, a privately-owned bank that functions as the main channel for Russian oil and gas payments.
A spokesman for the bank said that the men would appeal their conviction.
Defendants ignored red flags, judge says
Judge Sebastian Aeppli said that the bankers had ignored obvious red flags that the money was being funneled to Putin, in violation of international sanctions.
Aeppli said it had been "proven beyond a doubt" that Roldugin was not the real owner of the accounts, which were closed in 2016.
The judge added that the men should have conducted further investigations when the accounts were active given the amount of assets involved.
It should have raised suspicions not only because Roldugin was on a list of sanctioned individuals, the judge said, but also because he is a musician and not a businessman, and the amounts in these accounts totaled upwards of 10 million Swiss francs.
Other red flags were also neglected, such as the political and economic circumstances in Russia, the use of middlemen and offshore and intermediary accounts, Aeppli said.
Prosecutor Jan Hoffmann called it an "important sign" against money laundering in Switzerland.
The Kremlin had previously denounced the allegations that the money was being funneled to the president, calling it a case of "Putinophobia."
es/msh (AP, Reuters)