In explaining some of the nuances of money laundering, one understands more about the politics that go into a country’s policies and laws, including the influences that have affected US policy over the last six years.

It is not clear whether Putin "loaned" Donald the money to build his golf course in Scotland, or if there was some other form of Kompromat on Trump, but Trump's behavior in favoring Putin fits the model of other officials over whom Putin has or had leverage, like Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (who should definitely be investigated, by the way).Reading Bill Browder’s zesty new book about the theft, extortion, intimidation, lies and murder that are the Russian state’s daily levers of power can feel like reading several books at once. Browder assigned Sergei Magnitsky, head of the tax practice at Firestone Duncan, to investigate the purpose of the raid. Almost immediately, Russian oligarchs and corrupt government officials found ways to artfully steal from the companies.

Amid the horrors being reported every day from Ukraine, it also provides a highly readable insight into the true nature of the regime that is responsible for them.Creative poisoning being the method of choice to nix opposition it is no insignificant step to be so loudly in opposition to one Vladimir Putin. It's led to many acts of cybercrime and harassment (see review linked) against those trying to stop the actual stealing and killing. Moreover, if the manager had known the nature of my visit—talking to law enforcement officials about the sort of Russian gangsters who often booked suites like this—he probably wouldn’t have been so enthusiastic.

And as their investigation continues, they uncover an elaborate money laundering scheme of over a trillion dollars, with ties to the very head of the Russian government, who will stop at nothing to threaten Mr. This exploration of the dark heart of corruption asks the question of what one person can do in the face of such insidious corruption, and makes us ask what we can find in ourselves to stand up and resist those forces that would steal, decieve and murder for their own gain. When I arrived at my hotel that evening, the manager scurried over to the check-in desk and ushered the clerk aside. This book tells the story of the Magnitsky Act, the tragic circumstances that surround its creation, and the role that it has had in freezing money laundering assets trailing from Russia and Vladimir Putin to banks and countries across the world.This brilliant attorney, Sergei Magnitsky, believed that “Russia was changing for the better and that the rule of law would ultimately protect him. From their perspective, they’d successfully tracked down and arrested an international fugitive wanted by Interpol, which probably didn’t happen every day at this little police station in central Madrid. The most troubling aspect is how acquiescent the western establishment has been to Russian crimes and lies. It was a time of wild profiteering, as post-Soviet state assets were sold off on the cheap, and a venal oligarchy was created. The Act, initiated after the 358 day long wrongful incarceration and eventual death of Magnitsky in Russia, is one means that countries can track and prosecute monies laundered through their country’s banks.

After Magnitsky's death, Browder lobbied for Congress to pass the Magnitsky Act, a law to punish Russian human rights violators, which was signed into law in 2012 by President Barack Obama. Eighteen months later, Hermitage’s offices were raided by the Russian authorities and its paperwork removed. In these years, Browder made a fortune, turning Hermitage into the largest foreign portfolio investor in Russia. The continuing story of Bill Browder's prodigious efforts to bring retribution to Putin and the Russian oligarchs who murdered his colleague Sergei Magnitsky and have stolen billions from the people of Russia.An essential work by someone who understood long before the rest of the world did just how far corrupt Russian officials and businesspeople will go to defend their ill-gotten wealth, and how foreign lawyers, lobbyists and public relations firms enable them. Browder’s account of how he stood up to Putin in the face of danger, arrest warrants, and bullying is mandatory reading for anyone who wants to understand the tactics of modern autocracy.