Riot police searched a branch of Russia's Central Bank alongside representatives from the country's Investigative Committee, the Vedomosti newspaper reported Monday.
Officials seized a number of documents in a raid on Friday night.
Bank employees told Vedomosti that it
was the first time in recent memory that riot police had accompanied
investigators.
“As a general rule, the Central Bank always provides documents [to the authorities] on demand,” the source said.
The documents are
believed to be connected to
a case involving the International Joint-Stock
Bank (MAB), one Central Bank employee
told Vedomosti.
MAB
had its license revoked by Russian authorities
in February 2016.
The bank held more
than 6 billion rubles ($92.2 million) as a deposit for government-owned
company Almazuvelirexport.
The
state-owned
enterprise
came
under investigation after its
two
top managers were
accused of stealing money from the deposit from 2007 to 2011.
A press spokesperson for the Central Bank confirmed that a search had taken place on Friday which related to “certain employees.”
“The Central Bank is fully committed to identifying and punishing those who have broken the law, even if such people are bank employees,” the spokesperson told Vedomosti.
The Investigative Committee and the Almazuvelirexport Bank did not respond to requests for comment.
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