Russian émigrés living in the US and believed by authorities to have links with organised crime have made campaign contributions to leading US candidates and political parties.

Through family members and businesses, Semyon (Sam) Kislin - identified in a 1994 internal report by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a member of a Russian crime syndicate - contributed $46,250 to the political campaign of New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani, a Republican, in 1993 and 1997, election records show. The commodities trader also donated $8,000 to New York senator Charles Schumer, a Democrat, last year, and contributed to several other US political figures. The allegations against him were first publicised by the Center for Public Integrity, the Washington-based non-profit group, earlier this week. Mr Kislin has denied any links with organised crime. It also emerged that Jacob Bogatin, an associate of Semyon Mogilevich, who is himself alleged by US and UK intelligence authorities to be the head of a Russian crime syndicate, made donations to the National Republican Congressional Committee between 1996 and 1998. Mr Mogilevich has denied the allegations against him. Election records show Mr Bogatin contributed at least $2,750 to the Republican campaign group - sometimes under the name of his company, YBM Magnex. The Philadelphia-based magnet manufacturer, which was founded by Mr Bogatin with Mr Mogilevich, was raided and closed down by US authorities in May 1998. YBM Magnex pleaded guilty to securities fraud and was fined $3m in November 1999. These and other developments have prompted US investigators to start looking closely at Russian assets and investments in the country, particularly in the New York area, according to people close to the investigations. Though the political contributions traced so far are not large, they will fuel concerns that money from Russian organised crime could be finding its way into the political system.