Washington - The United States has expanded to 30 the number of defendants charged with defrauding a fund meant to compensate Holocaust victims, the US Justice Department said on Wednesday.
The charges allege nine new defendants and others who were charged last year stole more than 57 million dollars from the Jewish Claim Conference, a programme to compensate Holocaust victims and distribute funds from the German government within the United States.
The charges filed in New York expand the case from 19 individuals charged last year and earlier this year with stealing 42 million dollars.
At the centre of the scandal are employees of the New York-based organisation who filed false claims. They allegedly placed ads in Russian-language newspapers in the United States, seeking Jewish applicants from Eastern Europe. The employees then filed claims in their name seeking Holocaust reparations for the applicants who did not meet the eligibility requirements. If funds were awarded, the employee split the funds with the illegitimate applicant.
The scheme using false documents and doctored books allegedly went on for more than a decade and included some 5 000 applicants who received either one-time payments or monthly payouts from two funds for Holocaust victims. - Sapa-dpa