Hong Kong customs arrests 7 linked to syndicate that laundered record-breaking HK$14 billion using ‘stooge’ bank accounts, shell companies
- Syndicate linked to mobile app scam and two jewellery companies in India, according to customs
- Among those arrested is a 34-year-old man believed to be the mastermind of the operation, as well as his wife, brother and father
Customs officers have smashed a syndicate that laundered HK$14 billion (US$1.8 billion) through stooge bank accounts and shell companies in Hong Kong and at least 44 other places, arresting seven people in the largest such crackdown so far.
Describing the amounts laundered as “astonishing”, customs on Friday revealed the criminal network was linked to a mobile app scam in India and two jewellery companies in the country, which allegedly handled about HK$2.9 billion of the funds.
The department said the Hong Kong suspects were accused of laundering the cash through transactions involving possibly artificial gemstones and electronics, with a 34-year-old man believed to be the mastermind.
The man, his wife, brother and father were arrested, as well as three other residents accused of setting up a large number of shell companies and stooge bank accounts to trade electronics, the stones and jewellery.
“These bank accounts were used for receiving multiple local and overseas transactions before conducting complicated and frequent trades with multiple layers of laundering,” said Suzette Ip Tung-ching, the head of customs’ financial investigation bureau.
According to police, stooge account holders are those who loan or sell their bank accounts to syndicates to collect scammed money and launder crime proceeds in exchange for hundreds or thousands of dollars.
“In the process of the analysis, we found that a large amount of money came from India, as well as other overseas bank accounts,” Ip said. “That’s why we contacted overseas law enforcement agencies with a view to conducting an intelligence exchange.”