Jakarta –
Government Singapore uncovered one of the biggest money laundering cases in the world. The assets confiscated in this case reached US$ 2.8 billion or Rp. 43.68 trillion (exchange rate Rp. 15,600).
Quoted from Straits Times, Thursday (5/10/2023), this case was discovered in 2021 when the authorities saw the possibility of fake documents being used to ascertain the source of the funds in a Singaporean bank account. So that the suspects would not become suspicious, a small group of police officers was created to investigate this case.
After extensive investigations in 2022, police uncovered a network of people suspected of transferring money to Singapore from abroad, allegedly obtained from criminal activities. Some people are related by family ties.
The assets confiscated were worth more than US$ 2.8 billion, making it one of the largest money laundering cases in the world.
Second Minister of Home Affairs, Josephine Teo said this when answering 60 parliamentary questions regarding this case. He said authorities were alerted in 2021 when they discovered several signals, including the alleged use of fake documents to support the source of funds in Singapore bank accounts.
A number of suspicious transaction reports (STRs) or suspicious transaction reports submitted by financial institutions and other companies. In early 2022, police launched an extensive intelligence investigation that uncovered a network of people believed to be connected to each other, including family ties.
“The police analyzed the information and investigated further secretly,” said Theo.
He said the police aim to develop as complete a picture as possible of the suspects and their associates, their alleged criminal activities and assets, before taking action against them.
“As the investigation progresses, the network discovered by the police is increasing,” he said.
“More and more individuals are involved in suspected money laundering operations, and more of their assets held in Singapore are being discovered. The police are painstakingly and secretly tracing their relationships and assets,” he continued.
Teo continued, in early 2023, the police consulted with the prosecutor’s office, who decided there were sufficient grounds to suspect that a criminal act had been committed in Singapore. After extensively reviewing information and evidence, police launched a massive raid on August 15 involving more than 400 officers led by the Commercial Affairs Department.
A total of nine men and one woman were arrested and the following day charged with offenses including money laundering, forgery and resisting arrest.
In his development, Teo said that the funds most likely came from criminal activities abroad, including illegal online gambling and money lending without permits. He continued, the police had carried out further operations, and the authorities had confiscated assets worth more than US$ 2.8 billion.
The assets include 152 properties and 62 vehicles with an estimated value of more than US$ 1.24 billion, money in bank accounts totaling more than US$ 1.45 billion, and cash in various currencies worth more than US$ 76 million.
Other items include thousands of bottles of liquor and wine, more than US$38 million worth of cryptocurrency, 68 gold bars, 294 luxury bags, 164 branded watches and 546 pieces of jewelry.
(acd/ara)
2023-10-05 06:44:02
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