{"id":6542,"date":"2023-10-06T17:07:19","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T09:07:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mpl.hk\/?p=6542"},"modified":"2023-10-09T17:12:17","modified_gmt":"2023-10-09T09:12:17","slug":"hong-kong-customs-arrests-4-including-siblings-in-crackdown-on-syndicate-accused-of-laundering-hk600-million-using-shell-company","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mpl.hk\/hong-kong-customs-arrests-4-including-siblings-in-crackdown-on-syndicate-accused-of-laundering-hk600-million-using-shell-company\/","title":{"rendered":"Hong Kong customs arrests 4, including siblings, in crackdown on syndicate accused of laundering HK$600 million using shell company"},"content":{"rendered":"
Hong Kong customs has arrested four people, including three siblings, in a crackdown on a money-laundering syndicate accused of processing HK$600 million (US$76.6 million) in two and half years through the bank accounts of a shell company.<\/p>\n
The suspects included a 37-year-old owner of a money exchange company and her 34-year-old brother, who worked in her shop, and 39-year-old sister who served as the director of an investment company, a source familiar with the case said on Friday.<\/p>\n
He said the money changer and the investment firm occupied two adjacent ground-floor shops in North Point.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
According to the Customs and Excise Department, the fourth suspect \u2013 a 35-year-old man \u2013 worked as a compliance officer at the currency exchange company.<\/p>\n
Inspector Billy Au Wing-cheung of customs\u2019 financial investigation bureau said intelligence suggested the money changer allegedly handled a large amount of suspicious remittance transactions through 12 bank accounts of a shell company set up by the compliance officer.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe shell company claimed that it provided computer trading and technology consulting services, but no actual business was involved,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He added there were no tax records about the company\u2019s dealings, while the compliance officer had only reported his income from the money changer to the Inland Revenue Department.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn two and a half years, the shell company\u2019s accounts handled more than 1,800 transactions involving HK$600 million,\u201d Au said, referring to the period between January 2021 and July 2023.<\/p>\n
He said the firm handled up to 19 deals a day, with the largest single-day transaction amounting to HK$19 million.<\/p>\n
The funds came from the bank accounts of third-party companies in Hong Kong and overseas.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe third-party companies were involved in food wholesale and footwear trading, which were not commensurate with the businesses of the shell company,\u201d the inspector said.<\/p>\n
Au said the money was usually transferred out of the accounts on the same day or within a few days in a suspected money-laundering tactic.<\/p>\n
He added an investigation indicated the owner and employee of the money changer were aware of the alleged suspicious transactions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe three members of the family included the alleged ringleader of the syndicate,\u201d Au said.<\/p>\n
After months of investigation, customs officers began an arrest operation on Wednesday and picked up the three siblings and the 35-year-old compliance officer during raids on four flats and the two North Point shops.<\/p>\n
The four suspects were detained on suspicion of conspiracy to launder money \u2013 an offence punishable by up to 14 years in jail and a HK$5 million fine. They have been released on bail, pending further investigation.<\/p>\n
During the operation, officers seized computers, mobile phones, remittance receipts and bank documents.<\/p>\n
Au said customs officers were investigating the source of the money, recipients of the funds and the illegal activities behind the proceeds.<\/p>\n
The investigation was ongoing and further arrests were possible, he added.<\/p>\n