02/07/2019

11 Arrested In Money Laundering Probe

Eleven people have been arrested as part of an investigation into money laundering in Northern Ireland.

It comes as six properties were searched across Belfast yesterday, Monday 01 July.

Two men were later charged with money laundering offences and are due to appear in court this morning, 02 July, while nine others remain in custody.

The large scale search and arrest operation targeted individuals suspected of laundering money through bank accounts, after an investigation found that almost sixteen million pounds had been deposited to thousands of bank accounts across the UK from NI since January 2018.

Police believe the majority of the money came from criminal activity carried out by Chinese organised crime groups.

Among those arrested are six men aged 67, 48, 44, 42, 41 and 35 and five women aged 60, 38, 36, 34 and 32.

Detective Chief Inspector Ian Wilson said: "Money laundering is often a critical enabler of organised criminality and today's operation is part of a wider ongoing investigation. We are committed to keeping people safe by robustly pursuing those who are involved in laundering criminally derived money and enabling criminals to access the profits gained from their involvement in a range of illegal activities."

Anyone with information on this type of activity is urged to contact police on 101 or call the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.



(JG/CM)

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