Israeli police have detained three suspects who allegedly laundered millions of euros stolen from the French treasury through cryptocurrency trading. The money came from government subsidies for companies affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Israeli law enforcement busts money launderers using coins to clean money for French fraudsters
Three people were arrested in Israel this week on suspicion of providing money laundering services to criminals defrauding the French state. The operation was the result of an undercover investigation conducted by Lahav 433, Israel’s Special Crime Unit, according to the English-language online newspaper Times of Israel and major local media.
According to the publication, authorities believe that the detained individuals laundered millions of euros using various cryptocurrencies, which were then returned to their French clients and the Israelis were rewarded. Several other suspects are also being questioned as part of efforts to unravel the scheme.
In addition to Lahav 433the Yahalom Investigations Division of the Israeli Tax Authority and the Cybercrime and International Crime Division of the State Prosecutor’s Office also participated in these efforts. The Israel Police reportedly also worked closely with French police authorities and the European Union Law Enforcement Cooperation Agency (Europol).
While Israel began working on the case early in 2022, France began its investigation last year. French fraudsters exploited government programs to help entities adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021, when the European economy suffered a lockdown.
The French organizers of the theft set up a fictitious company and successfully applied for and received compensation granted by the government. Paris carried out inadequate oversight because it wanted to distribute funds quickly to provide immediate assistance to the financially struggling companies.
He then used the money laundering services of the arrested Israelis to purchase cryptocurrency with the funds, exchanging them through multiple coins, obscuring the original source of the funds before finally purchasing Fiat currency again. Police officials declined to give a comprehensive explanation of how the system worked, but promised to provide more details soon.
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