The effective prosecution of money launderers, including the recovery of illegally obtained assets, plays an important part in combatting organised crime. A dedicated Eurojust Report on Money Laundering that will analyse the Agency’s most significant cases in this area in the 2016-August 2021 period is currently being prepared. The report will identify the main legal and practical issues to be overcome, including the support Eurojust can provide and lessons from best practice. It will also take stock of the legislative developments in recent years, notably the Anti-Money Laundering Package proposed in July 2021.
Nearly 50 properties seized in action against money laundering in Italy and Spain
CRIME: An Italian suspect, already convicted for various crimes in Italy and Spain, supposedly committed large-scale money laundering of millions of euros resulting from illegal activities in Spain. Between 2006 and 2016, approximately EUR 12 million euros was transferred from Spanish bank accounts in the name of the suspect and his daughter to Switzerland and back to Spain to conceal the criminal dealings.
ACTION: A series of joint actions were executed during 2020 and 2021 against money money laundering, tax evasion and corruption in the province of Cuneo in Italy and the province of Malaga in Spain.
RESULT: 13 provisional arrests were made. A luxurious real estate property and 52 plots of land were seized in Cuneo, with an estimated value of EUR 5 million, while in Malaga 47 properties were seized and over 100 bank accounts frozen by the Spanish judicial authorities. Three luxury cars, cash, jewellery, valuable watches and artworks were also seized, with an estimated value of over EUR 1.5 million.
EUROJUST’S ROLE: Eurojust set up a JIT in 2020 and a coordination centre in March 2020 to prepare the joint actions, as well as organised coordination meetings during 2020-2021 between the Italian and Spanish authorities to facilitate the case’s coordination.
Eurojust is an agency of the European Union