Opinion – Follow the money, that is dark money

Most reliable estimates internationally put the amount at $! trillion in the US alone. Experts say that fully one quarter of this is controlled by Vladimir Putin and those close to him.

According to an Atlantic Council report last fall, approximately $40 billion have found their way west each year since 1990. Private ownership in Russia does not have the protections that have been part of established democracies for generations. This spurs cautious and pro-active entrepreneurs, with corrupt government officials and outright shysters to place their legitimate earnings, ill-gotten and fraudulent gains into investments abroad, away from mother Russia.