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| Europe |
| Binny had access to Swiss bank account |
| 2004-09-28 |
| Osama bin Laden had access to a shared Swiss bank account in the 1990s used to collect and redistribute family inheritance money, his half brother told a French judge, court officials confirmed today. Swiss citizen Yeslam Binladin, who spells his name differently from the terror leader, appeared briefly yesterday before investigating judge Renaud Van Ruymbeke in a long-running probe of suspected money laundering. Binladin told the French judge that two of his brothers had created the account at Swiss bank UBS to collect and redistribute family funds — and Osama bin Laden was among the beneficiaries, the officials said. Binladin, in questioning on a previous occasion by the French judge, had said that he had not had contact with the al-Qaida leader for about 20 years. Yeslam and Osama are among 54 children of the late Saudi construction magnate Mohammed bin Laden and his 22 wives. Binladin has condemned his half brother "for his acts and his convictions." Private investigator Jean-Charles Brisard said that he received new information in May from Swiss authorities indicating the terror kingpin had access to a joint account with his half brother at UBS from 1990 to 1997. "We can wonder why the bank left this account open until 1997, whereas the United States officially designated Osama bin Laden as a financier of international terrorism in August 1996," Brisard said. In December, 2001, Van Ruymbeke started an investigation to probe movements of cash between various companies owned by Binladin. He has never been charged. In February, Swiss authorities returned a van load of documents seized nearly two years ago from Binladin in a search at the request of French investigators in the money laundering probe. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |