* Acting prosecutor says Yanukovich, aides stole billions
* His rule was built on "total corruption"
* Austria lawyer ready to assist investigation
By Stephen Grey
KIEV, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Ukraine will urgently contactinternational organisations with an official request to helptrace bank accounts and assets controlled by ousted PresidentViktor Yanukovich and his allies, the acting prosecutor generalsaid on Wednesday.
Accusing Yanukovich and his aides of stealing "not millionsbut billions" of dollars, Oleh Makhnytsky said he had orderedpolice and intelligence agencies to draw up a list of foreignaccounts held by Yanukovich's aides and their connections.
"We are preparing today the requests to internationalorganisations to find the accounts," he told Reuters in aninterview.
Officials who he said were under investigation includedformer prime minister Mykola Azarov and Yanukovich's chief ofstaff Andriy Klyuev.
The prosecutor-general's announcement came as European Unionofficials prepared sanctions against leading figures in theousted leadership.
U.S. authorities warned banks on Tuesday to be on thelook-out for potentially suspicious transfers of financialassets by members of Yanukovich's circle.
Makhnytsky also said that every economic deal concluded inthe four years of Yanukovich's presidency would be carefullyre-examined for possible graft.
"We are doing these checks because all the activity of theformer regime was built on total corruption," he said.
FINANCIAL TRAIL
After the discovery of a lavish presidential retreat atMezhyhirya outside Kiev - complete with private golf course andpet zoo - and other luxury homes around the country, there is awidening anger and suspicion in Ukraine that Yanukovich and hisassociates may have taken a substantial slice from major publiccontracts.
According to evidence gathered by Ukrainian journalists andanti-corruption watchdogs, behind these properties are a seriesof holding companies, including in Austria, Liechtenstein,Britain, and offshore jurisdictions.
The retreat at Mezhyhirya, for example, is owned by aholding company controlled by Andriy Klyuev's brother Sergei, awealthy businessman and lawmaker.
A spokesman for Sergei Klyuev, who asked not to beidentified, said the estate was bought as a private investment:"He is a wealthy individual who saw this whole project as a goodcommercial proposition."
Other assets used by the president and his aides were set upand managed by an Austrian-based lawyer, Reinhard Proksch,according to Kiev's Anti-corruption Action Centre, a researchorganization.
Contacted by Reuters, Proksch confirmed he had helped set upcompanies that now appeared to have been used by Ukrainianleaders and their associates, although he had never met them.
Proksch said he was already providing information toLiechtenstein authorities, but was also happy to help any otherauthority including Ukraine. "All they can do is freezeeverything," he said.
But, for assets to be frozen, proof will be needed they wereacquired with money earned by criminal means.
Nina Bussek, a spokeswoman for Vienna prosecutors, said anearlier investigation into allegations of money-laundering fromUkraine had been dropped because "there needs to bedetermination of a so-called preceding act, which means themoney comes from criminal activity and that could not bedetermined. That is why the money laundering case was dropped."
Daniel Thelesklaf, chief of the Financial Intelligence Unitin Liechtenstein, told Reuters his agency was monitoringdevelopments. But he added: "So far we have not receivedrequests from Ukraine. We await the decisions by the EU onpossible sanctions."
A spokesman at the Swiss federal prosecutor's office,Jeannette Balmer, told Reuters they had not opened anyinvestigations nor received any requests for judicial assistancefrom Ukrainian authorities.
But another law-enforcement official in Switzerlandindicated that inquiries were expected be launched soon, oncesuch requests arrived.
Speaking on Austrian television on Tuesday, Foreign MinisterSebastian Kurz confirmed there was a draft EU sanctions list.
He said: "We know only the first draft of this list, whichcontains very prominent and well known names. We of course sentthis draft to the Financial Market Authority and the InteriorMinistry so that no time window opens for these people until thefinal decision by the European Union."
INTENSIVE SEARCH
Underlying the unstable political situation in Ukraine,Makhnytsky's official office in Kiev appeared unguarded exceptfor militia armed with baseball bats when visited by Reuters.
The revolutionary air hanging over the city was underscoredby a sole protester smashing his way through glass doors at thebuilding's reception area. He was removed by the militia.
In the interview, Makhnytsky said the Yanukovich governmenthad close ties to leading figures in business so prosecutorswould examine "very intensively" items in the state budget,tenders by the state, and the fuel and gas sector.
With searches under way in all the former residences of theex-president, Makhnytsky said national authorities would lookfor all traces of international bank accounts or companiesassociated with figures from the former leadership.
Asked whose assets he was seeking abroad, the prosecutorsaid Ukraine was looking to find the assets of Azarov, Klyuev,ex-interior minister Vitaly Zakharchenko and members ofYanukovich's family.
He also named one prominent businessman, Serhiy Kurchenko,who he said was closely tied to Yanukovich. Investigators hadalready found 685 million hryvnia (about $60 million) ofsuspicious transactions in his accounts, he said.
Kurchenko could not immediately be reached for comment andis believed to have left the country.
Asked about major commercial deals signed by Yanukovich'sgovernment - including production-sharing agreements for shalegas exploitation with oil giants Chevron and Shell - he said:
"We will check everything: all the schemes of theex-regime." Without pre-judging the investigation, if illegaldeals were found then they would be reversed, he said.
