Bertossa speaks out over the Borodin case

Bernard Bertossa, Geneva's chief Prosecutor, talks about the Borodin Case Keystone

The Geneva chief prosecutor, Bernard Bertossa, has spoken out about the granting of bail to the former Kremlin aide, Pavel Borodin, who is accused of money laundering.

Bertossa said in an interview, published on Saturday in the “Tages-Anzeiger”, a Swiss German newspaper, that he intended to proceed with the case despite the Geneva Court’s ruling on Thursday.

Bertossa’s comments come a day after Borodin returned to Moscow after the Russian government paid his five million franc bail.

Borodin is accused of laundering $25 million in kickbacks, that he allegedly received from two Swiss firms, Mabetex and Mercata, for lucrative contracts to renovate the Kremlin.

Both Borodin and two Swiss firms deny any wrongdoing.

In another interview in the French Swiss newspaper, “Le Temps”, Bertossa said that the decision of the Geneva court to grant bail was curious. He explained that this is because it effectively frees the accused before he had even been questioned.

He went on to add that this would hold up any subsequent hearings into the Borodin case and was another obstacle to the proceedings.

When asked if this would lead to an abandonment of the dossier, Bertossa said it was too early to tell.

“For the moment,” he said, “The inquiry will continue. We’ll have to see if Pavel Borodin attends the future hearings.”

He was quick to add that the decision to grant Borodin bail would not change the determination of the Swiss Authorities to combat money laundering in Switzerland.

He said, “By pursuing such cases, the penal system…is sending out a clear message that Geneva is no longer a haven for money laundering.”

swissinfo with agencies