An oligarch who allegedly masterminded a money laundering scheme that flooded Europe and the USA with billions in Russian money has appeared in court.
Former Moldovan MP Veaceslav Platon, 52, is accused of being involved in an enterprise which saw vast sums of criminal cash pass through the country's banking system with the help of corrupt judges.
Platon is wanted in his home country on charges of corruption, money laundering and 'putting into circulation of counterfeit money or securities'.
Beneficiaries of the funds – believed to be at least £16billion but reportedly as high as £65billion – have allegedly invested the laundered money in businesses and high-end property in London and other cities in wealthy nations, as well as splashing out on luxury goods.
He was first arrested in Ukraine in 2016, before being extradited to Moldova just a month later in a jet used by the country's former president.
