Australian law enforcement has charged four people who were allegedly behind an “elaborate and calculated” large scale money laundering operation. Over an 18-month period, investigators allege AUD$190 million ($124 million) was channeled through a “complex network of bank accounts, businesses, couriers and cryptocurrency accounts,” to avoid the attention of the authorities. Of course, the source of all this money was alleged illicit activities.
As the purported money laundering operation was so complex, uncovering it meant significant work for multiple agencies and more than 70 staff over the last year and a half.
The official PR indicates that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) coordinated the investigations, with their Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT). Other parties involved in uncovering this apparent web of deceit include the Queensland Police Service, Australian Border Force, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, AUSTRAC, and Australian Taxation Office – under the auspices of the Queensland Joint Organized Crime Taskforce (QJOCTF).
The above law enforcement organizations coordinated the execution of 14 search warrants at homes and businesses across Brisbane and the Gold Coast on June 5 and 6. At the same time, the aforementioned four people were charged. Some are now in custody, others on bail.
Obfuscating the source of millions of dollars is a lot of work, and those charged are claimed to be part of a network which:
- Owned armored transport as part of a security business
- Owned a classic car dealership
- Ran a sales promotion company
- Ran a cryptocurrency exchange services business
- Set up spouses as ‘straw directors'
- Held at least seven bank accounts
- Hold current assets of 17 properties and multiple vehicles, worth millions. Plus held tens of thousands in cash, and hundreds of thousands in cryptocurrency
Clearly, some of those businesses were chosen for their ease of mixing legitimate money with illicit income, in order to launder it. The degree of anonymity, speed of transactions, and loose global regulation of cryptocurrency made it instrumental to the income obfuscation efforts in the uncovered operation.
For the four people now formally charged, the next big event on their calendars will be upcoming appearances in court through July and August. We’d expect investigators to use the results of their searches and seizures to firm up their cases in the meantime.
The maximum sentences the accused will face range from 10 years to life imprisonment. Some of those charged face multiple counts.
“Many Australians are feeling the financial pinch but remain law-abiding and honest citizens,” said AFP Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer, in an official statement. “Criminals always choose greed over decency and will constantly find opportunities to increase their wealth at the expense of others.” It was also underlined that money laundering isn’t a victimless crime, as it fuels serious organized crime like drug trafficking, exploitation, and violence.
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