French law enforcement authorities launch criminal money-laundering investigation into Danske Bank in relation to #Magnitsky case

The French court, Tribunal de Grande Instance de Paris, has accepted the application of French law enforcement authorities to open a criminal money laundering investigation into the Danish financial institution Danske Bank for its role in the money laundering in France of funds, which originated from the US$230 million fraud uncovered by Sergei Magnitsky.

“This is an important step in our campaign for justice for Sergei Magnitsky. He was killed for uncovering the theft of $230m through a Russian government sponsored corruption scheme. We want to ensure that anybody in the West who benefitted from this crime or helped facilitate it are prosecuted to the full extent of the law,” said William Browder, leader of the Magnitsky Global Justice Campaign.

The criminal case in France is led by an investigative judge Renaud Van Ruymbeke, well-known for his role in high-profile political and financial corruption cases.

The investigation was commenced into the accounts of Danske Bank’s Estonian subsidiary, Sampo Bank, which were used to launder proceeds of the US$230 million fraud.

The French investigation was initiated following an application filed by Hermitage Capital Management, the firm, which was victimised in Russia in the US$230m fraud and whose lawyer Sergei Magnitsky was killed after exposing it and testifying about the involved state officials.

Accounts at Sampo Bank were used to launder dozens of millions of dollars in illicit proceeds out of Russia, including to France.

Previously, under the same French criminal case, a dual Russian-French national was arrested in St Tropez and millions of euros were frozen in France, Monaco and Luxembourg.

The transnational money laundering of proceeds of the US$230m fraud is being investigated by law enforcement in Switzerland, Luxembourg, and the USA among others.

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