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Kiev Expels Germans for Fraud

LVIV, Ukraine -- Ukraine expelled two German citizens after accusing them of attempting to involve Ukrainian and Crimean banks in a $5 billion money laundering scheme, the nation's secret service reported Thursday.


In a statement carried by Itar-Tass, the secret service said Dieter Limich and Alfred Wagner had arrived on the Crimean Peninsula to sign "illegal financial and banking agreements."


"The mechanisms of implementing the agreements through bypassing the National Bank of Ukraine and international financial bodies testify to the attempts to involve Ukrainian and Crimean banks in hard-currency transactions connected with money laundering," the secret service said.


It recommended that Ukrainian businessmen avoid contacts with suspicious foreigners and carry out a preliminary assessment of major financial deals.

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