Mafia-affiliated Russian immigrants have contributed to candidates in U.S. elections
According to donation records, candidates such as Mayor Rudolf Giuliani and Senator Charles Schumer have benefited from them.
Russian immigrants living in the U.S., who are suspected by U.S. authorities to be involved in organized crime, have donated money to campaigns by leading candidates and U.S. parties, in what appears to be an attempt to gain political influence. Campaign donor charts show that Simone Kislin, already identified by the FBI in 1994 as a member of the Russian Crime Syndicate, donated $ 46,250 through family members and various businesses to New York City Mayor Rudolf Giuliani's political campaign.
Kisslin, a commodities trader, also donated $ 8,000 last year to New York Democratic Sen. Charles Schumer, in addition to donating to other political figures in the American political landscape. The charges against him were first published earlier this week by the Center for Public Integrity, a non-profit group operating out of Washington. Kisslin, for his part, denied any connection to organized crime groups.
The reports also show that Joseph Bogtin, a source close to Semyon Mogilevich, described by the UK and US intelligence services as the head of a Russian crime syndicate, contributed several times to the Republican National Congress Committee between 1996 and 1998. Mogilevich also denied the charges against him.
Election reports show that Bogentin donated at least $ 2,750 to the Republican campaign group, sometimes doing so on behalf of his company, YBM Magnes, a Philadelphia magnets maker founded by Bogtin and Mogilevich and closed in May 1998 after a raid by law enforcement agencies. Shares and was required in November 1998 to pay fines worth $ 3 million.
Sources close to the investigation claim today that these and other developments have prompted U.S. authorities to conduct further investigations, in an attempt to locate more Russian investments and assets in the U.S., particularly in the New York area.
Although the political contributions made so far in these investigations are not large-scale, they already reinforce the fear that funds coming from Russian organized crime may find their way into the American political system.
FBI and other U.S. authorities as entities close to the Russian mafia, have popped up in Democratic Party fundraising events, though the two were not supposed to stay in the U.S. because they were rejected by immigration authorities. The two star in photos with President Clinton and Vice President Al Gore.
Last night, Senator Shomer's office said he had performed a background check on Kisslin, and found nothing about him. "If any of these allegations are proven true, we will undoubtedly return all the money," his spokesman said. And Liani, and Senator Charles Schumer.
Source: https://www.globes.co.il/news/article.aspx?did=183231