Million-Dollar Crypto Money Laundering Investigation Leads to Two Arrests

The Dutch Fiscal Intelligence and Investigation Service (FIOD) has arrested two individuals amid an ongoing cryptocurrency money-laundering investigation.

According to an official statement released earlier this week, both individuals were arrested on Monday, February 17, as part of an investigation led by the National Office for Serious Fraud, Environmental Crime, and Asset Confiscation (Functioneel Parket).

One of those arrested, a 45-year-old Dutch national is suspected of being involved in the laundering of roughly €2.1 million ($2.26 million). Per the investigation he reportedly made large purchases with a cryptocurrency credit card, but didn’t report his income’s source to the tax authorities. Moreover, he made various large cash withdrawals without being able to explain them to authorities.

Dutch authorities seized three kilograms of gold, €260,000 (about $280,000) in cryptocurrency, a car and other luxury items from him. The other arrested person is also accused of laundering hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Finance Magnates reports the pair used a bitcoin mixer, Bestmixer.io, to hide the origin of the ill-gotten funds. Cryptocurrency mixing services tumble various transactions to conceal the original source of the funds, making it extremely hard for investigators to identify whether funds come from illegal sources or not.

Bestmixer, as CryptoGlobe reported, was shut down in May 2019 by the Dutch Financial Criminal Investigative Service (FIOD) – with the assistance of Europol and Luxembourg authorities – in the “first law enforcement action of its kind” against a crypto mixing service.

Featured image via Pixabay.