RIA Novosti and TASS are both reporting that a jury at the Moscow City Court has reached a guilty verdict for the former businessman and banker Alexei Frenkel, who stands accused of organizing the murder of central banker and money laundering crusader Andrei Kozlov.

Kozlov was gunned down on Sept. 13, 2006 on his way home from a soccer match. He had earlier initiated money laundering investigations into Frenkel’s group, VIP Bank, and eventually suspended their operating license. Prosecutors are arguing that Frenkel organized the hit for $300,000 as “revenge” for Kozlov having put him out of business.

Despite my complete lack of faith in the Russian judicial system and the investigative abilities of the politically controlled procuracy, Frenkel may very well be guilty of the murder for all we know (broken clocks are right twice a day, after all…). Nevertheless, there are still some considerable unanswered questions.

Last 5 posts by Robert Amsterdam

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