By David Young-
A British businessman has been charged with conspiring to violate sanctions imposed by the US government on a Russian oligarch. The US Department of Justice (DoJ) said Graham Bonham-Carter, 62, was arrested on Tuesday after being accused of funding properties purchased by Oleg Deripaska and expatriating his artwork, which Bonham-Carter denied. He was charged with one count of conspiring to evade U.S. sanctions, in violation of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, one count of violating the IEEPA, and one count of wire fraud. Each of the charges carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
The DoJ said the US government would be seeking Bonham-Carter’s extradition as a result of the charges.
Mr Deripaska was initially sanctioned by the U.S for “having acted or purported to act on behalf of, directly or indirectly, a senior official of the government of the Russian Federation, and for operating in the energy sector of the Russian Federation economy”.
Bonham-Carter, the cousin of the actor Helena Bonham Carter, is accused of engaging in more than $1m (£900,000) of illicit transactions to fund real estate properties in the US for Deripaska’s benefit, in an investigation conducted with “substantial assistance” from the UK’s National Crime Agency.
It is alleged the businessman was instructed by Deripaska to set up a company, named GBCM Limited, for managing his properties, including two in New York City and one in Washington DC.
The DoJ said money was sent from a GBCM Limited account in Russia to pay for staff salaries and property taxes and to maintain the oligarch’s properties.
Four days after the sanctions were imposed on the industrialist, four protesters broke into one of his properties in Belgrave Square in London, before declaring it “belongs to Ukrainian refugees”.
Bonham-Carter had his bank accounts frozen for six months at Westminster magistrates’ court in March after it was alleged they contained money linked to Deripaska.
Deripaska founded the Rusal aluminium company and is considered an ally of Russian president Vladimir Putin. His wealth has been estimated to be more than £2bn.
The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions against Deripaska in 2018, stating that he had acted “on behalf of, directly or indirectly, a senior official of the Government of the Russian Federation.” The Treasury Department also pointed to allegations that Deripaska had “bribed a government official, ordered the murder of a businessman, and had links to a Russian organized crime group.”
Many of Bonham-Carter’s accounts were frozen in March due to suspicions that he was linked to five of Deripaska’s properties in the United States and Britain. The Department of Justice stated that “the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom provided substantial assistance” and indicated that the United States will seek Bonham-Carter’s extradition from Britain.