2024-07-31 04:42:41
The NCA says the money belonged to Aven, even though it was not registered in his name. These funds had been frozen since 2022, when British sanctions were imposed on the billionaire.
The NCA believes that attempts to move this money, as well as transactions made after March 15, 2022, are in violation of the sanctions.
According to a court ruling, the money held in British banks was seized after Aven’s wife and his asset managers admitted that the funds may have been intended to be used for illegal purposes.
As NCA lawyers previously pointed out, Aven himself does not have a UK bank account, but is suspected of using the accounts of his wife and his asset manager.
The investigation concerned the withdrawal of around £3.7 million from a trust in Austria to be transferred to Britain hours before European Union (EU) sanctions were imposed on Aven.
The NCA says it has for the first time secured sanctionable asset forfeiture under the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
Aven has been sanctioned by the EU, Great Britain, the USA and other countries, because these countries believe that he is a person close to the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin and serves the interests of the Kremlin, including Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.
Latvia has appealed the judgment of the EU Court, which requires Aveam to cancel the EU sanctions.
Aven also has Latvian citizenship and since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, he lives in Latvia with his family.
2024-07-31 04:42:41