Over €1.36m seized as gardaí help expose billion-dollar Russia-linked laundering ring

Irish seizures form part of a major UK-led investigation into a laundering network accused of helping Russia evade sanctions

The enterprise has benefited criminals all over the world, from Russian-speaking hackers with millions in cryptocurrency that they needed to turn into cash and assets, to street gangs in Britain who had physical money they needed to launder. Picture: An Garda Siochana/PA Wire

More than €1.36m has been seized in Ireland as part of an international operation targeting a billion-dollar money laundering network that purchased a bank to fund the Russian war against Ukraine.

The National Crime Agency in the UK has identified a money laundering network there which it says bought a bank in Kyrgyzstan to facilitate sanctions evasion and payments supporting Russian military efforts.