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Former Russian Official Faces U.S. Indictment for Allegedly Diverting Nuclear Safety Aid Funds
Former Russian Atomic Energy Minister Yevgeny Adamov was arrested in Switzerland on suspicion of diverting $9 million in U.S. money aimed at securing Russian nuclear facilities, the New York Times reported today (see GSN, March 25, 2002). An indictment is expected in Pittsburgh charging Adamov with multiple felony counts of fraud and money laundering. Adamov could receive a lengthy prison sentence if convicted, according to his chief attorney, Lanny Breuer. The money in question allegedly came from the U.S. Energy Department, which has worked to help collect nuclear material from Russian warheads and to improve safety at Russian nuclear reactors, according to the Times. Breuer called the allegations “baseless.” Adamov served as atomic energy minister from 1998 to 2001, when Russian President Vladimir Putin forced him from office. U.S. officials have long complained that the institute headed by Adamov — which since the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991 has sought Western aid and commercial contracts — was selling nuclear technology to Iran, according to the Times (David Stout, New York Times, May 4). “As far as we are aware, Adamov is facing charges in connection with his commercial activities in the early 1990s prior to his appointment as Russian atomic energy minister,” Alexander Yakovenko, spokesman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, told the Interfax new agency. If Adamov rejects a simplified extradition to Pittsburgh, the United States will have to file a formal extradition request, said Swiss Justice Ministry spokesman Folco Galli (Balz Bruppacher, Associated Press/Yahoo!News, May 4).
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