Germany raids 24 properties linked to Putin ally Usmanov

By FRANK JORDANS
Associated Press

BERLIN (AP) — Hundreds of police have raided 24 properties across Germany linked to Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, in connection with alleged breaches of sanctions and money laundering rules. Prosecutors in Frankfurt and Munich said Wednesday in separate statements that some 250 state and federal police were searching properties in four states. Prosecutors named the suspect only as a Russian businessman. But German weekly Der Spiegel, which first reported the raids, named him as Usmanov. Two officials involved in the investigation, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to do so publicly, confirmed his identity to The Associated Press. Usmanov is subject to sanctions in the United States and the European Union.