A million-dollar robbery that Iran sent to Russia with a case of vodka

The Russian government said that “more than a million dollars was sent from Iran in a box of vodka to the Russian Foreign Ministry, and was stolen earlier this year.”

Russian media reported that “Moscow received $ 1.5 million from Iran, which was placed in a box of” Absolute “vodka and diplomatic bags in November 2019, as payment for consular services.

The US sanctions on the banking and financial sectors in Iran have isolated Iranian banks from the international financial system, forcing them to follow this method to meet their financial obligations.

An internal audit conducted by the Russian Foreign Ministry showed that $ 1.1 million of these funds had disappeared by mid-December 2019.

Charges were immediately brought against Natalia Agaltsova, the official of the ministry’s top financial direction, who was placed under house arrest pending the conclusion of the investigations.

Local station Rain TV reported that the suspect alleged that the vodka box was filled with dollar bills covered with a top-tier denomination of $ 100.

The station added that information that the suspect underwent a polygraph test and found that he knows the location of the stolen money.

He quoted a former colleague, whose name was not mentioned, as saying: “Natalia tells her relatives that she expects a court ruling against her, but the execution is suspended.