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To: Alex who wrote (39581)	8/25/1999 7:15:00 AM
From: Rarebird	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116877

Suspected IMF diversions tied to Russian Mob NEW YORK, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Authorities probing possible money-laundering now suspect Russian mobsters may have been involved in the diversion of some International Monetary Fund money and other foreign aid to Russia, the Wall Street Journal reported in Wednesday's online edition. Citing ''people familiar with the matter,'' the paper said the development is the first time law enforcement officials made the link between suspected money laundering by Russian organised crime through the Bank of New York Co Inc. (NYSE:BK - news) and the possible diversion of IMF and other aid money. The IMF has lent about $20 billion to Russia since 1992 with investigators having focused on $200 million that ended up in a Channel Islands account held by a Russian commercial bank, the paper said. The IMF said on Monday it was looking into reports of diverted funds but that it had made payments only to the Central Bank of Russia. The Journal said New York state authorities have also been looking into account activity at other U.S. and foreign banks in New York to determine whether they could have served as conduits for the diversion of IMF loan money. These bank names and the exact amount of funds that may have been diverted could not be determined, the paper said. The scrutiny is part of a larger probe that began with an investigation into the handling of billions allegedly tied to Russian mobsters in what could be one of the largest money laundering schemes in U.S. history. The Bank of New York, which has said it is cooperating with investigators, has put two employees on leave in connection with the investigation.