Crime does pay…for rehabilitation

Published on Thursday 15 July 2010 16:19

MILLIONS of pounds seized from a Russian money-launderer will be ploughed into youth projects.

Bids are now being invited for funds from the CashBack for Communities scheme, launched by justice secretary Kenny MacAskill.

The 2.5 million fund is the first portion of a 6.5m haul recovered from Moscow-based Anatoly Kazachkov. Projects will be able to bid for grants of up to 30,000 over the next two years, administered by national agency YouthLink Scotland.

Mr MacAskill, on a visit to the CashBack-funded Recharge scheme in Tranent, East Lothian, said: "By supporting projects such as (this], we are showing our young people that there is much more to life than offending or getting out of your heads on drink or drugs.

"CashBack for Communities delivers on our ambitions for young people, but it also benefits the wider community, whether that's getting kids off street corners, getting them involved in things like volunteering or offering them the chance to give something back."

Recharge has used its CashBack funding to operate a drop-in session for 13 to 18-year-olds every Friday night for two years.

The money that made it possible was recovered from Kazachkov, 64, after a suspicious multi-million dollar bank transfer from an account in Hungary to a Scottish bank in 2004.

Crown Office officials used the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 to seize the cash.