US wins case to seize $300 million in alleged bribes by Russian telcos

The U.S. Justice Department has won the right to impound $300 million that it claims was paid in bribes by two major Russian telecoms firms to a close relative of Uzbek President Islam Karimov, news agency Bloomberg reported Friday.

Justice Department officials claim that leading Russian mobile phone operator MTS and fellow telecoms giant VimpelCom paid more than $500 million in bribes to shell companies owned by the relative in exchange for access to the Uzbek telecoms market, Bloomberg reported.

The U.S. says the money was channeled to the Uzbek president’s relative through bogus consulting contracts and a network of shell companies, the report said.