Andrey Kostin, the long-time president and chairman of Russia’s VTB Bank, was indicted in New York for allegedly evading U.S. law by owning and controlling assets, including two superyachts and a luxury home in Aspen, Colorado.
The indictment, unsealed in court documents, accuses Kostin and two U.S.-based co-conspirators of using shell companies and laundering money to profit from his assets, worth more than $135 million, despite being sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018.
The co-conspirators, Vadim Wolfson of Austin, Texas, and Gannon Bond of Edgewater, New Jersey, were arrested on Tuesday. They are accused of renovating and selling Kostin’s Aspen home for millions of dollars in profit and using U.S. currency to maintain his two superyachts, named Sea Rhapsody and Sea & Us.
Head of a Russian Bank, Kostin (Credits: The Moscow Times)
While Kostin remains at large and is unlikely to face the charges in an American courtroom, the case highlights the Justice Department’s efforts to counter Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The Justice Department’s “Task Force KleptoCapture” aims to take down individuals who are funding the war and prevent wealthy oligarchs from accessing goods and services in the West.
Attorney General Merrick Garland emphasized the department’s commitment to cutting off the flow of illegal funds that support Putin’s war.
The task force has brought charges against 70 people, 33 of whom have been arrested worldwide. Investigators are working to seize over $700 million in assets to transfer to Ukraine to bolster its war effort, with only $6 million transferred so far. The process of bringing charges and seizing assets is complex and relies on international cooperation.
Feliks Medvedev, a Russian national living in Georgia, pleaded guilty to transferring more than $150 million of foreign funds into the U.S. and operating an illegal money-transmitting business. Several other defendants charged in conjunction with Task Force KleptoCapture have also pleaded guilty in U.S. courts.
Justice Department and FBI officials emphasized the challenges of using U.S. law to address an international crisis like Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They will continue to focus on lawyers, money managers, and facilitators in the U.S. who help oligarchs evade sanctions.
