Major raid against money laundering network: Over 60 million euros in damage

Around 800 emergency services searched residential and business premises in Hesse, North Rhine-Westphalia and Belgium in a raid against tax fraud. The investigation is aimed at 50 suspects who are said to have laundered cash from criminal transactions through a network of shell companies and evaded taxes and social security contributions amounting to more than 60 million euros, as the authorities involved announced.

The focus is therefore on a system in which cash from illegal transactions via front companies is said to have been transferred to accounts abroad as supposedly legal book money. The accused are said to have received a commission of three percent for the mediation.

At the same time, companies, including several from the transport and logistics industry, are said to have used the cash to pay for undeclared work. Fake invoices are also said to have enabled unauthorized input tax deductions and so-called sales tax carousels were operated.

"Today we have the big fish on the hook. Behind the 'cash against book money' system are professional structures that were specifically designed to withdraw money through several levels of taxation and to smuggle it abroad, thereby concealing illegal work," said Stephanie Thien, head of the North Rhine-Westphalia State Office for Combating Financial Crime. The uncovering of the structures is thanks to international cooperation.

The investigators were able to trace payment flows of around 150 million euros. The network is said to have been active since 2017. In order to make detection more difficult, dummy companies were regularly founded and liquidated again. Straw people would have acted as managing directors.

During the searches, four arrest warrants were executed and assets initially amounting to almost 500,000 euros were secured. This included cash, gold, high-quality watches, luxury handbags, jewelry and vehicles. Bank balances are not yet taken into account. A firearm with live ammunition was also confiscated.

Focus in Hesse

In Hesse, the operation was directed against 41 accused and 22 companies. 60 residential properties and company addresses as well as nine banks and tax advisors were visited there. Ten residential properties and ten company addresses were searched in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The investigation was coordinated by the North Rhine-Westphalia State Office for Combating Financial Crime, the European Public Prosecutor's Office, the public prosecutor's offices in Frankfurt am Main and Darmstadt, the main customs office in Frankfurt am Main and Belgian authorities.