US Justice Department Seizes Two Luxury Apartments in NYC Worth $14 Million Allegedly Bought with Proceeds from Mongolian Mining Contract Fraud
Investigation into Alleged International Financial Corruption
The United States Justice Department announced today that it has filed a civil complaint seeking to forfeit two luxury apartments in New York City, believed to have been purchased with proceeds from alleged Mongolian mining contract fraud. The apartments are located at:
- 21 East 61st Street
- 230 West 56th Street
Alleged Corruption Involving Former Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold
The complaint alleges that the funds for these Manhattan apartments were received by former Mongolian Prime Minister Sukhbaatar Batbold and his family in an intricate scheme involving shell companies and illegal transfers (Court Document).
The Civil Division, Criminal Division, and the FBI were involved in the investigation.
“The United States will not be a haven for corrupt officials seeking to conceal proceeds of their crimes.”
- United States Attorney Breon Peace for the Eastern District of New York
Background of the Alleged Fraud
The complaint refers to an intricate scheme where the entity Catrison, allegedly owned by Batbold, was awarded a $68 million mining contract despite having no operational history, mining expertise, or financial infrastructure (Court Document). The funds from these contracts were then siphoned into foreign bank accounts and transferred to U.S. accounts.
Batbold’s eldest son has been identified as the U.S. account holder.
Department of Justice’s Commitment to Combating Financial Corruption
Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the FBI’s Criminal Division, stated that the Department of Justice is committed to tracking down proceeds of corruption and ensuring that kleptocrats cannot hide their ill-gained assets in the United States (DOJ Press Release).
Discussion on the Forfeiture Action
The civil forfeiture action, handled by the Eastern District of New York’s Business and Securities Fraud Section, the Office’s Bank Integrity Task Force, and the Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative, aims to recover the proceeds of Batbold’s alleged financial crimes. The case is still under investigation, and the defendants named in the complaint - 21 East 61st Street Apartment Corp. and Condominium Unit 58D - have yet to be served.
“The FBI remains steadfast in our mission to dismantle public corruption and prevent the misuse of U.S. banking systems to launder the proceeds of foreign crimes.”
- FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge James Smith
Proceedings of Crime Allegations
The proceeds of crime allegations in the forfeiture complaint do not imply guilt. A court must first determine these allegations as fact before the assets are officially forfeited to the United States.
The full complaint can be found under Docket No. 24-CV-2147.