Businessman Per Morten Hansen (60) has been sentenced to prison for two years and five months for serious money laundering after NOK 17 million was sent from Belgium to a Norwegian bank account. The millions stemmed from a fraud against a wealthy Belgian businessman.
Økokrim investigated the case for almost two years and believes it has uncovered an international network that organizes the laundering of proceeds from major frauds.
BACKGROUND: Accused of serious money laundering
Hansen has been convicted of helping to secure the profits from a fraud of NOK 17 million in Belgium. The money was transferred to Norway, but stopped when it was to be sent on to China.
Lawyer Christian Flemmen Johansen at Elden Advokatfirma is the defense attorney for Per Morten Hansen.
– There are substantial errors in the district court’s assessment of the facts. The district court has misunderstood parts of the facts of the case, with the result that Hansen has been convicted on an incorrect basis, Flemmen Johansen tells VG.
He states that the verdict will be appealed.
– In other words, the case is far from over, and Hansen is still to be considered innocent until there is a final verdict, says Flemmen Johansen.
A 43-year-old British citizen who comes from Kosovo was convicted last autumn as the mastermind in the case. According to the indictment, he allegedly directed the laundering of the millions from London. In addition, two British men have been sentenced in Belgium for the fraud.
Around NOK 15.7 million of the amount has been received. This is due to the bank’s routines for money laundering control and does not affect the sentencing to any significant extent, the judgment states.
A 36-year-old man from Oslo was sentenced to two years and three months in prison for serious money laundering and for possession of 56 grams of cocaine.
The 36-year-old’s defender, lawyer Alexander Greaker X Storrvik Advokatfirma, states that he will appeal the verdict.
– My client denies criminal guilt for money laundering, but acknowledged the other two conditions. The district court has not ruled on several key pieces of evidence, including the 43-year-old mastermind’s testimony. The main man explained that he deceived my client, writes the defender to VG.
First State Attorney Håvard Kampen in Økokrim has led the investigation.
– The verdict is an important step forward in the roll-out of an international money laundering network. So far, six people have been convicted in the case in Norway and Belgium, says Kampen and adds:
– International money laundering is a big problem that we in Økokrim use a lot of resources to combat.
VG has previously mentioned the businessman Per Morten Hansen in connection with the sale of the Sputnik vaccine at an overpriced price to several countries.
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