- Europol have taken down a criminal banking network
- These criminals cleaned money for other organisations
- Criminals are increasingly using alternative banking solutions
A criminal parallel banking organization with multiple branches from across Europe has been taken down by Europol, the agency has confirmed. This takedown comes in the form of arrests for 17 individuals (15 in Spain, as well as one in Austria, and Belgium).
Alongside the arrests, criminal assets worth €4.5 million were seized, as well as electronic devices and firearms. The criminals arrested were primarily Chinese and Syrian in nationality, and are accused of providing money laundering services to criminals.
“This encompasses parallel banking services, illegal hawala banking, cash collection, cash courier services and the exchange of cryptocurrencies for cash. The money launderers were operational in at least two branches: one that catered largely to the Arabic-speaking criminal world and the other to criminal networks originating from China,” Europol confirms.
An underground financial system
Also seized in the takedown was €183,000 in cryptocurrency, and 77 bank accounts – this structured underground financial system reportedly used alternative banking methods in order to evade law enforcement.
“This operation is a prime example of the interconnection between criminal networks,” a Europol spokesperson told Cybersecurity News. “By following the money trail left by previous investigations into migrant smuggling, we’ve managed to take down a key financial infrastructure that enabled various criminal activities throughout Europe.”
This comes after Europol and Eurojust dismantled an extensive investment scam that stole €3 million from around a hundred victims. This fraudulent enterprise encouraged users to pour money into fake investment schemes, with cybercriminals making ‘substantial profits’ from the platform.
Digital and financial fraud are increasingly connected, with more and more tools available for criminals to access victims and to grow crime networks. Criminals are turning to alternative banking systems to clean and move money thanks to lowered monitoring and regulation.
