FBI raid on Russian billionaire's home in Washington DC

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FBI raid on Russian billionaire's home in Washington DC

The FBI raided the Washington home of Russian billionaire Oleg Deripaska on Tuesday as part of what media reports described as a court-authorised search agent could be seen entering the neo-classical property in the north-west capital and standing guard outside. They sealed the driveway with yellow tape. It was not immediately clear why search had taken place. An FBI spokesperson said law enforcement activity was occurring, but declined to elaborate according to NBC News.

The raid appears to be the latest setback for Deripaska, who is trying to have his name removed from the US sanctions list. In June, a judge at a Washington district court rejected a lawsuit he had filed against the US Treasury Department which sanctioned him in 2018.

Vladimir Putin has made no secret of his support for the President, Deripaska, and declared he has no interest separate from those of the Russian state. He has also travelled on an American diplomatic passport, including during his visits to Russia.

The Treasury Department issued sanctions in response to the Russia s sweeping campaign for 2016 to meddle in the US election and to various cyber-attacks. It said Deripaska had acted for Putin on behalf of senior Russian government official code and represented the Kremlin in other countries.

The Treasury said then: Deripaska was investigated for money laundering and has been accused of threatening the lives of business rivals, illegally wiretapping a government official and taking part in extortion and racketeering. The US also sanctioned Deripaska s firms, including the United Company Rusal and the Aluminum Magnifier & Construction U.S. Deripaska vehemently denies wrongdoing. In his writ, he said the move by the United States Board had effectively destroyed his wealth, reputation and hard-earned global assets.

Rusal was removed from the sanctions blacklist after Deripaska reduced his commodity stake and gave up control of Rusal s holding company. The wealth of EN Deripaska is estimated to be $4.9 bn, according to Forbes Magazine.