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Two businessmen have been charged with orchestrating a money laundering scheme to protect Russian oligarch Viktor Bechselberg. President Vladimir Putinsince his $90 million yacht was seized.
Vladislav Osipov, 51, a dual Russian-Swiss citizen, and Richard Masters, 52, a British citizen, have been sued in connection with the operation of the 255-foot luxury yacht Tango after Vekselberg was sanctioned. , was indicted on charges of sanctions evasion and money laundering.
Masters was arrested in Spain on Friday at the request of the Department of Justice. Osipov is on the run.
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Russian businessman Viktor Vekselberg attends the plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, September 5, 2019. (Reuters/Reuters Photo)
“Sanctions evasion facilitators allow oligarchs who support the Vladimir Putin regime to flout U.S. law,” said U.S. Attorney Matthew Graves.
Both men are said to have used dummy companies to grant Bechselberg ownership of the yacht. He was sanctioned in April 2018. US sanctions prohibit US companies, such as banks, from doing business with these sanctioned entities.
Masters ran a yacht management company in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, and is said to have taken over management of Tango. Department of Justice Said. He allegedly renamed his yacht “Fanta” to avoid sanctions restrictions from banks.
As a result, US financial institutions processed hundreds of thousands of dollars in transactions for Tango that would not have been authorized if Vekselberg’s involvement was exposed.
Additionally, Osipov and Masters had yacht employees continue to do business with U.S. companies and used a series of evasive tactics to evade detection, including: Payment in other currencies Federal prosecutors said through a third party.
Palma de Mallorca Yacht Club in Mallorca, Spain sees the yacht Tango owned by Russian billionaire Viktor Vexelberg. (Reuters/Reuters Photo)
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“As a result of these schemes, Tango’s operating mechanisms, including the Internet, technology, weather forecasts, and computing systems, and Tango’s traps, such as satellite television, luxury goods, and conference call software, are all to Bechselberg’s interests. U.S.-origin products and services provided by U.S. companies,” the Department of Justice said.
The yacht was seized by Spanish authorities in April at the request of the Ministry of Justice.Several luxury yachts owned by Russian oligarchs are subject to US sanctions following Moscow sanctions Invasion of Ukraine almost a year ago.
