A probe has been launched into alleged money laundering by the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), an NGO led by an opposition activist Alexey Navalny. The announcement was made amid ongoing opposition protests in Moscow.
Members of the foundation, as well as other individuals “linked to its activities” are suspected of laundering the hefty sum of 1 billion rubles ($15.3 million) over the past three years, Russia’s Investigative Committee said on Saturday. The FBK is an opposition NGO, which focuses primarily on open-source ‘investigations’ into alleged cases of high-profile corruption.
So far, the Investigative Committee has not named any members of the NGO allegedly involved in the money-laundering scheme, but did shed some light on the alleged criminal activities.
To create “an impression of lawful possession and use” of criminal money, “the co-conspirators deposited the sum through Moscow’s ATMs to accounts at several banks,” the committee’s spokeswoman Svetlana Petrenko said, adding that the cash was transferred to the accounts of the FBK afterwards.
The announcement was made amid ongoing opposition protests in central Moscow, which were organized by Navalny’s allies. Navalny himself is currently in jail, serving a 30-day term for inciting illegal protests.
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