US Attorney General Merrick Garland attends US President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address to a Joint Session of Congress at the US Capitol in Washington, DC, March 1, 2022. (Photo by Pool/Sipa USA)
DC: US President Joe Biden Delivers First State of the Union Address to Joint Session of Congress
WASHINGTON (77WABC)— The U.S. Justice Department says it will crack down on Russian oligarchs and anyone else who violates the sweeping sanctions imposed by the Biden administration in response to the war against Ukraine.
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday announced the creation of Task Force KleptoCapture, a team of federal agents and prosecutors responsible for investigating and prosecuting any violations of new and future sanctions.
That includes seizing the assets belonging to oligarchs and others who violate the sanctions, and thwarting any efforts to use cryptocurrency to get around sanctions.
Garland said in a statement announcing the sanctions that the Justice Department “will leave no stone unturned” in investigating and prosecuting “those whose criminal acts enable the Russian government to continue this unjust war.”
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