Chinanews.com, September 1. According to the press release of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government, Hong Kong Customs took an enforcement action code-named "Moon Shadow" on August 29, successfully dismantling a money laundering group, involving a total amount of 411 million yuan (HKD, the same below) .
Four men suspected of being involved, aged between 21 and 36, were arrested.
At the end of last year, Hong Kong Customs officers detected a money laundering case based on intelligence and arrested a man and a woman involved in the case.
After in-depth investigation and analysis of the flow of funds, Customs found that three other 21-year-old local men had opened 64 personal accounts in different local banks (including virtual banks) in one year from October 2019, and from 2019 to 2021 It handles more than 9,000 suspicious transactions annually, involving a total of about 411 million yuan.
In addition, one of them opened an account on a virtual currency exchange platform to handle virtual currency of unknown origin; while the other person's suspected criminal proceeds involved a closed local money changer.
The background and financial situation of the three men mentioned above are highly disproportionate to the large transactions in their personal bank accounts.
Customs then took enforcement action on August 29 and raided four residential units in Sau Mau Ping, Yau Tong, Yuen Long and Tin Shui Wai, and arrested the three men.
After follow-up investigation, Customs officers arrested another 36-year-old local man in Tai Kok Tsui, suspected of being the mastermind of a money laundering syndicate, and recruited the three arrested men to open personal bank accounts to assist in handling the suspected criminal proceeds.
Customs officers arrested 4 men suspected of being involved in the case by dividing the charge of "dealing with property known or believed to represent the proceeds of an indictable offence" (commonly known as money laundering) and seized a batch of items involved in the case, including two computers, portable Phone, bank account documents and bank cards.
The case is still under investigation, and the four arrested men are now on bail pending further investigation. It is not ruled out that more arrests will be made.
Hong Kong Customs reminds the public that using personal bank accounts to process funds of unknown origin, whether or not monetary rewards are involved, may have the opportunity to commit money laundering.
According to the Hong Kong Organised and Serious Crimes Ordinance, any person who knows or has reasonable grounds for believing that any property, whether in whole or in part, directly or indirectly, represents the proceeds of an indictable offence on behalf of any person and still deals with that property, is is a crime.
If convicted, the maximum penalty is a fine of $5 million and 14 years in prison, while the proceeds of the crime can also be forfeited.