US EditionFriday-night drug deals helping Russian war machine, UK crime agency warns
Operation Destabilise led to 128 arrests and over £25 million seized, targeting networks laundering cash for drugs and Russian military funding through a Kyrgyzstan bank.
- The National Crime Agency revealed a billion-dollar laundering network bought a bank to fund Russian military efforts, with Altair Holding SA purchasing a 75% stake in Keremet Bank on Christmas Day 2024.
- Operation Destabilise began by tracking Evil Corp and exposed Smart and TGR laundering from street cash to bank purchases, with couriers moving cash hidden in washing powder across at least 28 UK towns.
- The investigation has led to 128 arrests and the seizure of more than £25 million in the UK, with international law enforcement partners seizing $24 million and EUR2.6 million overseas, while in the past year another 45 suspects were arrested and £5.1 million seized.
- Sal Melki said, 'The NCA has inflicted a serious wound on these organisations,' as the campaign warns couriers in English and Russian they face long prison sentences for small pay.
- The NCA says these networks helped Promsvyazbank evade sanctions and enable Russian clients to bypass restrictions, with Security minister Dan Jarvis adding, `This complex operation has exposed the corrupt tactics Russia used to avoid sanctions and fund its illegal war in Ukraine.
18 Articles
18 Articles
According to the British Agency for Combating Organized Crime, these groups, operating in dozens of cities across the country, include among their clients the Irish drug cartel Kinahan, RT channel or Russian spy services.
Was ex-Wirecard manager Jan Marsalek sponsored by Russian money-launderers?According to media reports, this is what British investigators wanted to find out.Ex-Wirecard manager Jan Marsalek is reportedly associated with a billion-dollar money-laundering system.The system links drug dealers to sanctioned Russian oligarchs, reported the newspaper "Financial Times" on Friday, citing the British Criminal Police Agency National Crime Agency (NCA).Bri…
Scale of billion-dollar money laundering network revealed - as British drug takers warned
Profits from drug sales are often turned into cryptocurrency - and according to the National Crime Agency, these proceeds have a direct link to "geopolitical events causing suffering around the world".
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 46% of the sources lean Left, 45% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
