|
Funds Frozen: NYC-Based Company Funneled Money Into Iran, Officials Say
 The Bush administration moved Wednesday to clamp down financially on a New York City business suspected of acting as a front company for Iran's Bank Melli, which has been accused of providing support to Iran's nuclear program. "This scheme to use a front company set up by Bank Melli - a known proliferator - to funnel money from the United States to Iran is yet another example of Iran's duplicity," said Stuart Levey, the Treasury Department's under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. The Treasury Department covers action ASSA Corp. of New York City as well as its parent, ASSA Co. Ltd., located in the Channel Islands. Any assets belonging to the companies found in the United States are frozen and Americans are prohibited from doing business with them. The U.S. government alleged that ASSA Corp. was created by Bank Melli to hold its interest in a building located at 650 Fifth Ave. in New York. The building's construction had been partly financed by a Bank Melli loan, Treasury said. ASSA Corp. co-owns the building through a partnership formed with the Alavi Foundation of New York, called 650 Fifth Avenue Co., the government said. The United States alleged that ASSA Corp. "has repeatedly transferred rental income generated from the 650 Fifth Avenue partnership back to Bank Melli through ASSA Co. Ltd." The government alleged that ASSA Corp. has shared financial and other information on a regular basis with Bank Melli. The department said its action does not interfere with the business or other activities of the building's tenants. Posted by: Fred 2008-12-18 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=257523 |