[JURIST] Russian investigators have raided the offices of various companies affiliated with the former oil giant Yukos [corporate website; JURIST news archive] in connection with a $7 billion money-laundering investigation, prosecutors said Wednesday. Prosecutors have previously said they were pursuing such charges [JURIST report] against former Yukos CEO Mikhail Khodorkovsky [JURIST news archive], who has been sentenced to eight years in prison on separate tax charges, although no charges have yet been filed [JURIST report]. Prosecutors would not confirm whether the most recent round of searches was connected to those charges. Prosecutors released a statement claiming to have found evidence that company managers hid profits by paying dividends to fraudulent companies overseas. Yukos has a news release on the raids. Mosnews has local coverage. AP has more.