U.S. Seeks Default Order Against Uzbek President's Daughter
- U.S. demand for $550 million stems from VimpelCom bribe probe
- Shell companies were used to hide bribes to enter Uzbek market
This article is for subscribers only.
The Harvard-educated daughter of Uzbekistan’s president and several of her closest associates ignored a U.S. government demand to turn over more than $550 million held in Swiss bank accounts linked to an international money-laundering conspiracy.
The U.S. Justice Department now wants Gulnara Karimova, the eldest daughter of Uzbek President Islam Karimov, and the others to be held responsible for the payment. Prosecutors made the request in a letter to a Manhattan federal court judge on Thursday, saying Karimova and the group failed to respond to a civil forfeiture complaint against three bank accounts.