Russian financier arrested for murder

MOSCOW – A top Russian financier faced an arrest order on Friday for allegedly ordering the contract murder of the deputy head of Russia’s Central Bank, Russian news agencies reported.

Alexei Frenkel “was detained yesterday at 1:00 am in the night but neither his relatives nor anyone else was told about this,” the suspect’s lawyer, Igor Trunov, was quoted by RIA-Novosti as saying. Deputy Central Bank Chairman Andrei Kozlov spearheaded efforts to counter money laundering in Russia and earned a reputation as a strict enforcer.He was shot together with his driver in Moscow in September last year.Frenkel, 35, is well known in the Russian banking community and formerly chaired the board of VIP-Bank, which had its licence withdrawn last year by the Central Bank for money laundering.A statement from prosecutors on Thursday said that a total of seven people have been held in the inquiry, including the alleged killers, as well as go-betweens.The prosecutor’s office did not reveal their identities.Russian news agencies on Friday quoted the lawyer for a woman, Liana Askerova, as saying she was detained by police on Wednesday in central Moscow on suspicion of involvement in the killing.The business daily RBK said Frenkel began his banking career in 1992 and was previously chairman of two other financial institutions – Diamant Bank and Elektrobank – before becoming chairman of VIP-Bank in 2000.Kozlov’s murder prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin to order a tightening of banking controls in Russia, where the financial services market is becoming a major draw for foreign investors.Nampa-ReutersDeputy Central Bank Chairman Andrei Kozlov spearheaded efforts to counter money laundering in Russia and earned a reputation as a strict enforcer.He was shot together with his driver in Moscow in September last year.Frenkel, 35, is well known in the Russian banking community and formerly chaired the board of VIP-Bank, which had its licence withdrawn last year by the Central Bank for money laundering.A statement from prosecutors on Thursday said that a total of seven people have been held in the inquiry, including the alleged killers, as well as go-betweens.The prosecutor’s office did not reveal their identities.Russian news agencies on Friday quoted the lawyer for a woman, Liana Askerova, as saying she was detained by police on Wednesday in central Moscow on suspicion of involvement in the killing.The business daily RBK said Frenkel began his banking career in 1992 and was previously chairman of two other financial institutions – Diamant Bank and Elektrobank – before becoming chairman of VIP-Bank in 2000.Kozlov’s murder prompted Russian President Vladimir Putin to order a tightening of banking controls in Russia, where the financial services market is becoming a major draw for foreign investors.Nampa-Reuters