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CRIME

Alps murders: Police appeal in hunt for 4×4

French and British police have appealed for help in tracking down the driver of a right hand drive 4x4 vehicle who they believe may hold the key to unlocking the mystery of the brutal murder of a British-Iraqi family in the French Alps last year.

Alps murders: Police appeal in hunt for 4x4
Flowers placed at the scene near Chevaline in the French Alps where the British Iraqi family were gunned down along with a French cyclist. Photo: AFP

British police assisting the investigation into last year's murder of a British-Iraqi family in the French Alps on Monday released footage of a 4×4 vehicle seen close to the crime scene.

Detectives told BBC's Crimewatch programme that they wanted to trace the owner, whom they believe may be British, of a right-hand drive 4×4 vehicle which was spotted in the French commune of Chevaline at around 3:20 pm on September 5 last year.

Saad al-Hilli, 50, his wife Iqbal, 47, from Surrey and grandmother Suhaila al-Allaf, 74, who lived in Sweden, were all gunned down in their car on September 5th not far from the town of Annecy. French cyclist Sylvain Mollier, 45, was also killed nearby. The al-Hilli's two daughters – seven-year-old Zeinab, and four-year-old Zeena – survived the attack.

Just over six months down the line and despite dozens of detectives from France and the UK working on the case, the killer or killers have not been found.

Detective Superintendent Nick May said: "I am appealing for anyone with a right-hand drive 4X4, particularly a grey, black or dark coloured BMW X5, to cast their minds back to September last year. Were you on holiday in the French Alps at the time? Did you visit the Annecy area?

"I am particularly keen to speak to any owner of such a vehicle who visited the towns of Doussard or Chevaline on the afternoon of September 5 as they may be able to provide vital information to assist with this ongoing joint investigation.

"This location is very popular and there may have been a number of tourists staying in the local area or travelling through at that time of year.

"The timing of this sighting is clearly significant and it is important that we trace this vehicle if only to eliminate it from our inquiries.

"This was a shocking crime, and we remain committed to working with our colleagues in France to find whoever was responsible and bring them to justice," he added.

Earlier this year French prosecutor Eric Maillaud, who is leading the probe to solve the murder, told The Local it was too early to admit defeat in the hunt for the killers.

“Of course it is possible we will never find them, but it’s too early to conclude that,” Maillaud said. “The investigation is only six months old, which in terms of police inquiries is a very short period of time.”

“It’s out of the question that we will be thinking like that now.”

Earlier this month investigators were dealt a blow when a request by French judges to visit Iraq to try to find clues about Saad al-Hilli's family background was turned down by France's Foreign Ministry on the grounds of security.

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BANKING

Danish bank to pay millions to end French laundering probe

Denmark’s largest bank has agreed to pay a multi-million sum to end legal pursuits in France linked to alleged money laundering in its Estonian subsidiary that resulted in heavy US penalties

Danish bank to pay millions to end French laundering probe

Danske Bank will pay €6.3million (47million kroner) to end French financial authorities’ investigation.

An independent auditor’s report published in 2018 alleged Danske Bank’s Estonian unit allegedly laundered some €200billion through 15,000 accounts from 2007 to 2015.

The payment was agreed on August 27th with France’s national financial crime prosecutors and validated by a court on Wednesday. The agreement does not involve any admission of guilt.

Danske last December pleaded guilty in the United States and paid a $2billion fine.

The bank last October set aside an amount roughly equal to its US fine in expectation of legal pursuits in several countries.

Probes are underway in Estonia, Denmark, and Britain.

France charged Danske in 2019 with organised money laundering, which it denied, saying it was unaware of its Estonian subsidiary’s activities.

Tracfin, the French finance ministry’s anti-money laundering unit, found suspect movements on two accounts linked to a Franco-Russian businesswoman who has since been handed a two-year suspended sentence.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Danske’s counsel Niels Heering said his institution was “happy to reach this accord which for us is a way to close this chapter”, adding that “cracking down on financial fraud remains a priority” for the bank.

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