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To: Enigma who wrote (49209)	2/17/2000 10:38:00 AM
From: Alex	Respond to of 116753

$7 Billion Laundered Through Bank of New York More free (seized) cash for the US government. A former employee of the Bank of New York and her husband have admitted laundering at least $7bn through the bank, much of it for Russian nationals hoping to evade customs duties and taxes. In a New York federal court, Lucy Edwards and Peter Berlin pleaded guilty to a range of offences. They included setting up a branch of a foreign bank without regulatory permission, operating an illegal wire transfer business, fraudulently obtaining visas, bribing an official, evading US taxes, accepting illicit payments and laundering them offshore. The confessions represented a major break in the case, described as the largest ever money laundering investigation. Until now, the couple were charged only with the relatively minor offence of operating an illegal money transfer business. The Russian-born couple surrendered to the FBI in a deal with prosecutors on Tuesday, after flying in from London. Federal prosecutors are likely to use their co-operation to secure further convictions. An FBI director said that "much remains to be done". Reports that they would admit they had bribed a BoNY official had sparked speculation that the conduct of the bank could again be questioned. But on Wednesday it emerged the employee in question was Svetlana Kudryavstev, a junior employee dismissed last September. The couple said they paid Ms Kudryavstev $500 a month to ensure the transfer business ran smoothly after they moved to London. Prosecutors have already charged her with lying to the FBI. According to the couple, the scheme began in late 1995, when Ms Edwards was approached by members of Russia's Depozitarno-Kliringovy Bank (DKB) to set up the accounts at the BoNY. She was working as a vice-president at the bank's eastern European division, and along with her husband was able to set up an account under the name Benex International in early 1996. Later that year, officers at DKB asked the couple to open a second account, which they did under the name BECS International. In autumn 1999, they said they would be acquiring control of Flamingo Bank, and would need a third account, which was set up under the name Lowland Inc. The couple said they received $1.8m in commissions, transferred to offshore accounts to evade US taxes. To prove money laundering charges, prosecutors must show the funds were the proceeds of illegal activity. They said the accounts had been used to facilitate criminal activities, including paying a ransom to kidnappers of a Russian businessman. The couple agreed to forfeit more than $1m in proceeds, a brokerage account and their London residence. The US has also seized $6m held in BoNY accounts. The Financial Times, February 17, 2000