A bank deposit in Switzerland that has been blocked in connection with a Russian request for legal assistance remains blocked for the time being. That has been determined by the federal court. The corresponding procedure is suspended.
In a ruling published Wednesday, the Federal Supreme Court thus upheld a complaint filed by the Federal Office of Justice (FOJ). The blocked assets belong to a company based in the British Virgin Islands, through which Russian brothers Dimitri and Aleksei Ananyev allegedly smuggled embezzled money.
Russia accuses them of having funneled a total of about $1.5 billion at the expense of Promsvyazbank, the Lausanne decision said.
The Federal Criminal Court ruled in August that Russia’s request for legal assistance should be denied and the assets released. The Federal Supreme Court has now overturned this decision.
She comes to the conclusion that the Russian request could easily be rejected if it only concerned the transmission of documents. Because a rejection would also lift the ban and the values would no longer be available if Russia later submitted a new request for legal assistance.
political level
The Federal Supreme Court further states that Russia is still a contracting party to the European Agreement on Mutual Legal Assistance. A suspension of the application is a matter for the political authorities. In addition, it cannot be ruled out that Switzerland will initiate proceedings regarding the assets.
The Russian request is based on a report from the Swiss Money Laundering Hotline and the Zurich Public Prosecutor’s Office is already pursuing money laundering proceedings. A criminal seizure of the funds is therefore not excluded. (judgment 1C_477/2022 of 30 January 2023) (aeg/sda)
Soource :Watson
I am Amelia James, a passionate journalist with a deep-rooted interest in current affairs. I have more than five years of experience in the media industry, working both as an author and editor for 24 Instant News. My main focus lies in international news, particularly regional conflicts and political issues around the world.
