Swiss court drops criminal case related to Gulnara Karimova

A Swiss court has decided to discontinue the criminal case related to Gulnara Karimova. The court document cited the expiration of the statutory limitation period for prosecution as one of the main reasons. It also took into account that there is no likelihood of Karimova being extradited to Switzerland or released anytime soon.

Nevertheless, the Geneva-based bank "Lombard Odier", mentioned in the investigation materials, was not absolved of liability. The bank was fined 3 million Swiss francs for failing to take adequate measures against money laundering.

The court also ordered the confiscation of more than 400 million francs in assets. A former account manager of the bank who handled financial transactions was sentenced to a 24-month suspended prison term.

Gulnara Karimova was suspected of taking bribes and concealing hundreds of millions of dollars in Swiss banks between 2005 and 2013. However, the court did not reach a conclusion on whether these charges were proven or not. The decision was based on procedural circumstances rather than the merits of the case.