Aug. 18 (Bloomberg) -- OAO Sberbank, Russia’s largest bank, said it uncovered a loan-fraud scheme perpetrated by an “organized criminal group” with the possible help of former employees.

The fraudulent transactions were carried out between June 2006 and April 2007 at Sberbank’s Stromynsk branch in Moscow, the state-run lender said in an e-mailed statement, without elaborating.

The Interior Ministry said earlier today that Sberbank managers may have helped steal more than $109 million and 52 million euros ($73 million).

A criminal investigation has been opened “into an organized group comprised of the managers of a Sberbank branch, the bank’s economic security officers and their accomplices,” the ministry’s economic security department said in a statement.

To contact the reporter on this story: Anastasia Ustinova in St. Petersburg at austinova@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 18, 2009 09:41 EDT