Latest news with #financialCrime
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Dutch Authorities Are Investigating Louis Vuitton Netherlands as Part of a Money Laundering Case
Louis Vuitton Netherlands if facing some serious scrutiny. The subsidiary of the French house is being probed by Dutch authorities for its connection to a money-laundering case against a Chinese woman. Identified as Bei W., the customer reportedly laundered nearly $3.5 million (3 million euros) from September 2021 to February 2023 at LV shops dotting the Dutch country, The New York Times reported. More from Robb Report Bulgari Unveils the First Mansion in Its Residential Resort in Turkey Buffalo Trace's Weller Line Just Dropped Its Oldest Whiskey Yet This $42 Million Mansion in Beverly Hills Was Once Home to a 'Gone With the Wind' Star Over the almost 18-month period, Bei W. never surpassed 10,000 euros, or almost $11,800, on a single luxury-goods transaction; going over that benchmark would call for a report of a cash purchase, The New York Times reported. That repeated string of sales, as well as hovering near the cash-reporting threshold, should have been a red flag to Louis Vuitton Netherlands stores, authorities say. As a result, prosecutors are investigating the subsidiary to see if it violated any money-laundering regulations. Bei W. allegedly used unlawful funds, sourced from illicit activities, to purchase a variety of high-end goods from LV stores under different names and e-mail addresses, authorities detailed at a preliminary hearing earlier this month. The customer in question reportedly used daigou, a practice where a person purchases goods on behalf of someone located in mainland China and ships the items to them, to shop at the Dutch Louis Vuitton stores. Bei W. allegedly sent her purchases back to China and Hong Kong, officials say. These kinds of daigou purchases (the market of which is estimated around $87 billion in 2023, according to the site Dutch News) can skirt high import taxes in China, but they can also be a way to conceal the source of illicit funds. That's key here, because Dutch authorities allege Bei W.'s money came from an underground banker trying to launder money. The person from whom she received the cash has already been convicted for their involvement in the plot. Two others involved in the case are also facing charges, one of whom worked at the maison and allegedly alerted Bei W. as to when items become available in the proper price range for the scheme, according to prosecutors. LVMH did not immediately respond to Robb Report's request for comment. Click here to read the full article.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump's Epstein Fiasco Takes Darker Turn as Dem Senator Drops New Bomb
A few days ago, as the Jeffrey Epstein scandal gripped Washington, Senator Ron Wyden offered a striking revelation in an interview with The New York Times. The Oregon Democrat said that his investigators had discovered that four big banks had flagged to the Treasury Department $1.5 billion in potentially suspicious money transfers involving Epstein, much of which appeared to be related to his massive sex trafficking network. The revelation—which emerged via Wyden's work as ranking Democrat on the Finance Committee—ratified widespread suspicions that there is still much we don't know about Epstein's relations with some of the most powerful and wealthy elites in the world in the lead-up to his 2019 arrest on sex trafficking charges. Now Wyden is ratcheting things up once again. Wyden's office just sent a new letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi—which The New Republic obtained—suggesting seven potent lines of inquiry that the Justice Department could follow, right now, to dig more deeply into Epstein's web of financial relations with global elites. 'I am convinced that the DOJ ignored evidence found in the U.S. Treasury Department's Epstein file, a binder that contains extensive details on the mountains of cash Epstein received from prominent businessmen that Epstein used to finance his criminal network,' Wyden writes in the letter. The Treasury Department has this information because that's where banks file Suspicious Activity Reports, or SARS. Wyden's letter says his staff has documented that Epstein-related filings by banks contain 'information on more than 4,725 wire transfers involving Epstein's accounts, all of which merit further investigation.' Wyden's letter seeks to demonstrate what the Trump administration is not doing to examine Epstein's financial relations with the rich and powerful. This comes after Bondi's recent announcement that there's no evidence of any Epstein 'client list,' which appeared to close the door on any release of the 'Epstein files,' the trove of evidence gathered by law enforcement in connection with his arrest. That has persuaded much of the MAGA movement—and many liberals and Democrats—that a lot is being kept hidden about his activities that would implicate other elites. Wyden's move here is in some ways a trolling exercise, since DOJ won't act on it. But such trolling by lawmakers can be constructive if it communicates new information to the public or highlights the failure of others in power to exercise oversight and impose accountability. Wyden's letter does both. For instance, Wyden suggests that DOJ prosecutors and FBI agents should 'immediately investigate the evidence contained in the Treasury Department records on Epstein.' Wyden's investigators know of these records because his office has been examining Epstein's financial transactions for several years. In February of 2024—when Democrats controlled the Senate—Wyden's staff viewed in camera (that is, privately) thousands of pages of Treasury files documenting those transactions. That review brought to Wyden's attention the $1.5 billion in suspicious transactions flagged to Treasury by big banks, which is detailed in the Times report. Wyden's letter fleshes out these revelations, noting starkly that Treasury's 'Epstein file contains significant information on the sources of funding behind Epstein's sex trafficking activities.' That appears to mean Wyden's investigators saw evidence in those SARS that a large chunk of the money that passed through Epstein's network was related to that sex trafficking. As the letter notes: Epstein clearly had access to enormous financing to operate his sex trafficking network, and the details on how he got the cash to pay for it are sitting in a Treasury Department filing cabinet. To be fair, it's unclear whether DOJ has or has not examined these Treasury files; it's possible DOJ has done so. But Wyden's office notes that at minimum, DOJ has a responsibility to say whether it has done this, and if so, what this review unearthed. DOJ has not replied to Wyden's questions in this regard, his office says. Wyden's letter also lays out other lines of inquiry for DOJ, urging examination of a number of specific payments to Epstein by several wealthy financiers that his investigators discovered. The letter also suggests subpoenaing banks that filed these SARS, in case they failed to report on Epstein-related transactions that remain unknown. In an intriguing move, Wyden also presses DOJ to examine 'hundreds of millions of dollars in wire transfers' discovered by his investigators that passed through 'several now-sanctioned Russian banks.' The latter adds suggestively: 'It appears that these wire transfers were correlated to the movement of women or girls around the world.' Wyden also urges DOJ to investigate banks that failed to report on suspicious Epstein transfers in a timely manner and to depose bankers who presided over large Epstein-related transactions, among other things. All this could worsen this fiasco for Trump. Right now the White House insists that he personally favors transparency on the Epstein files but is letting Bondi, DOJ and the FBI decide how to proceed. Miraculously, they are opting not to divulge the files beyond moving to release grand jury testimony, the one thing Trump has ordered them to seek, as it's unlikely to be revelatory. Given Trump's professed desire for transparency, it's unclear why he won't simply order the full files released. With new reporting suggesting Trump might have been closer to Epstein than previously known, the possibility that Trump himself is in the files—whether in incriminating fashion or not—can't be dismissed. Wyden is also demanding that Treasury release to Congress these SARS documenting Epstein's transactions. Yet Treasury is apparently refusing, making the administration's obfuscation look even darker. In that regard, Wyden's office also offers another revelation. In the Times piece, a Treasury spokesperson dismissed Wyden's demand for release of these documents, insisting that when Joe Biden was president, Wyden 'never asked' for this information, exposing the demand as 'political theater.' But Wyden's office says this is false. The in camera review by Wyden staffers ofTreasury documents in February 2024 itself shows that Wyden sought this info from the Biden administration—and that he got access to it. What's more, a Wyden aide tells me that in 2024, soon after Wyden's staff viewed these Treasury documents in camera, Wyden actively moved to get the Senate to subpoena their release. Because Finance Committee rules require bipartisan support for subpoenas, Wyden sought the backing of several GOP Senators on the committee, including now-chairman Mike Crapo and Marsha Blackburn. But none would support a subpoena, the aide says. That also has very dark implications, and you'd think MAGA would now intensify pressure on Senate Republicans to seek access to these Treasury documents as well. But with the Epstein scandal now threatening Trump with serious political damage, a subset of powerful MAGA influencers—ones who initially thought the files would expose pedophilia among elite Democrats—are suddenly losing their zeal to see them divulged. House GOP leaders just scuttled a vote on compelling their release. That's why moves like this one by Wyden are important, and why Democrats should use their limited power to do more of them. This would keep the spotlight focused where it counts: The Trump administration possesses large amounts of information about Epstein's corrupt and depraved dealings with unidentified members of the global elite, and Trump and his top advisers—with active GOP acquiescence—are now all in on the elite cover up.
New York Times
7 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
Louis Vuitton Netherlands Entangled in Money-Laundering Case
She paid in cash and shopped often. She never spent beyond a set amount, but over about 18 months, the authorities say, this single customer bought millions of euros worth of bags and other luxury goods from Louis Vuitton shops in the Netherlands. Now, Dutch prosecutors are investigating Louis Vuitton Netherlands, a subsidiary of the French luxury brand, in connection with a case against the customer, a Chinese woman who is accused of laundering millions of euros in an international scheme. Law enforcement officials in the Netherlands say that the suspicious purchasing patterns should have alerted the Louis Vuitton shops to wrongdoing and are questioning whether the company should have raised alarms. The company is being investigated for potentially violating money-laundering regulations. The case shines a light on the role of luxury goods in financial crime, as well as the reputational risk for brands whose high-end clientele may include people trying to disguise the origins of funds. While fancy boutiques don't have the same obligations to report suspicious financial activity as banks, they do have some legal responsibilities to alert the authorities to some types of transactions. Prosecutors accuse the woman at the center of the case — who has been identified publicly only as Bei W., in accordance with Dutch law — of laundering nearly 3 million euros ($3.5 million) from September 2021 to February 2023. Two other defendants who are said to have helped her are also facing charges. At a preliminary hearing this month, prosecutors said that Bei W. received large sums of illicit money generated through criminal activity from an individual who has already been convicted in connection with the scheme. She is said to have spent the cash in several Louis Vuitton stores in the Netherlands, using various names and email accounts. The goods were then sent to Hong Kong and China, prosecutors contend. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
ABC News
7 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
Russian couple accused of money laundering scheme to face Qld Supreme Court
A Russian couple accused of masterminding a multimillion-dollar money laundering operation have been committed to stand trial in the Queensland Supreme Court. Alexandra Bugrova, 47, and Dmitry Rimskiy, 50, who moved to Australia in 2015, have been charged with dealing with the proceeds of crime worth $1,000,000. An Australian Federal Police (AFP) investigation was launched after a tip-off from Austrac that the Gold Coast pair had deposited more than $4 million into ATMs across 576 transactions, which were structured to avoid the financial crime watchdog's $10,000 reporting threshold. Police allege the cash was laundered at banks and ATMs in New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria and South Australia between July 2022 and September 2023. The funds were allegedly used to purchase or rapidly repay mortgages for waterfront mansions in Hope Island, Broadbeach Waters and Runaway Bay, houses in Labrador, Alexandra Hills and Mount Gravatt, and a high-rise unit at Milton. The AFP seized $15.6 million in assets, including seven properties in Brisbane and the Gold Coast, $514,000 worth of cryptocurrency and more than $1.95 million in cash found in a suitcase during a raid on the couple's Hope Island home in December 2023. While defence barrister Angus Edwards KC acknowledged the transactions were deliberately designed to evade detection, he said the charges should be thrown out because there was no evidence the money was the proceeds of crime. Mr Edwards told a committal hearing at the Southport Magistrates Court the couple were wealthy business owners who were trying to move their money out of Russia and were afraid of political persecution from the Putin administration. "We certainly accept that we have engaged in conduct designed to hide the money being deposited," Mr Edwards said. "Russia is not a democracy. [The government] is engaged in a war in Ukraine and it is well-known they are prone to seizing assets. "They were afraid of sticking their heads up above the parapet and having their assets and their businesses stripped from them in Russia." Crown prosecutor Dylan Kerr conceded the Commonwealth's case was circumstantial but told the court the "irresistible inference" was the money was the proceeds of crime. "It is not uncommon in a money laundering case that authorities do not know where the money came from," he said. "If it is the case that all this money came from Russia, why was it deposited in Australian dollars and not in rubles?" Magistrate Kerry Magee said the cash deposited "exceeded their reported earnings by a significant amount". "In essence, the defendants are asking me to find that … the defendants' conduct was for the purposes of avoiding seizure of their assets by Russian authorities," Ms Magee said. "I have no means of assessing the reasonableness or otherwise of that hypothesis. "I am of the opinion that the evidence is sufficient to put you on trial." The couple do not speak English and a Russian translator had to be used for the arraignment. They did not enter a plea and were released on bail. The maximum penalty for the charges is 25 years in jail. The pair will face Brisbane Supreme Court at a date yet to be set.
Forbes
21-07-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Fashion Entrepreneur Hunsicker On $1 Million Bail Over CaaStle Fraud
Christine Hunsicker, former CEO of fashion startup CaaStle Inc., leaving Manhattan federal court in ... More New York on Friday, July 18. (AP Photo/Larry Neumeister) Christine Hunsicker, the entrepreneur and founder of fashion platform CaaStle Inc., has been released on a $1 million bail package after being charged by federal prosecutors with defrauding investors out of over $300 million following the collapse of her tech company. The 48-year-old Hunsicker of Lafayette, New Jersey turned herself in to face charges on Friday morning past and pleaded not guilty that afternoon during a court appearance in Manhattan. The Securities and Exchange Commission also filed a lawsuit against her in the same court, claiming that she created and disseminated false financial statements and audit reports to investors while raising more than $250 million for CaaStle. The latest legal moves come months after Hunsicker resigned as CaaStle's CEO over allegations she misled investors about the company's financial success and as a result she now faces a six-count indictment that include wire fraud, securities fraud, money laundering, making false statements to a bank and aggravated identity theft. In the indictment Friday, prosecutors claimed that Hunsicker defrauded investors in CaaStle and Brendan Hoffman's fashion investment platform P180 out of more than $300 million. She allegedly fabricated documents to portray CaaStle as a 'high-growth, private company with substantial available cash' when in reality it faced significant financial stress from February 2019 up to around March 2025, according to the indictment. Earlier this year the board told shareholders that Hunsicker had allegedly handed over financial statements exaggerating CaaStle's revenue to certain investors. As a result, Hunsicker stepped down as CEO and CaaStle sought Chapter 7 protection in Delaware on June 20, declaring $10-$50 million worth of liabilities. Prosecutors allege, however, that Hunsicker once valued the CaaStle business at more than $1.4 billion. Hunsicker Team Says More To Story Lawyers for Hunsicker said that she had fully cooperated with the federal probes, however prosecutors 'nonetheless has chosen to present to the public an incomplete and very distorted picture in today's indictment.' Lawyers Michael Levy and Anna Skotko said in a joint statement: 'There is much more to this story, and we look forward to telling it.' Authorities said Hunsicker falsified CaaStle's financial statements and bank records to raise capital. This included alleged representations that CaaStle earned $66.3 million on revenue of $439.9 million in 2023, when in reality it lost $81 million on revenue of $15.7 million. CaaStle worked wiht a number of major U.S. retailers. (Photo Illustration by Thomas Fuller/SOPA ... More Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) Prosecutors said Hunsicker fraudulently raised more than $275 million for CaaStle and $30 million for a related venture, P180. Beginning as Gwynnie Bee Inc., before changing its name in 2018, CaaStle worked with brands and retailers such as Express, Ann Taylor, Loft and Bloomingdale's to rent clothes to consumers. The business-to-business technology and logistics company enables apparel brands and retailers to offer customers subscription-based rentals of apparel. Hunsicker Sued For P180 Hunsicker has also been sued by some investors and by P180, which she co-founded. P180 accused Hunsicker of fabricating subscribers and revenue and inducing the firm to obtain assets that could be leveraged to continue the CaaStle fraud. The SEC sued Hunsicker on Friday in the same court, alleging that she created and sent to investors false financial statements from February 2019 to at least March while raising more than $250 million through the offer and sale of preferred stock and common warrants. The SEC said that while Hunsicker claimed CaaStle had achieved 'rapid and steady growth' after a rebrand of the business in 2018 and had become profitable by December 2022, its revenues were decreasing, losses were rising and the company never became profitable. The complaint further alleged that Hunsicker misled investors into believing they were buying shares in secondary transactions from earlier investors. However, that chare claims these investors were purchasing original issue shares directly from the company, and investor interests were diluted as a result. Hunsicker also allegedly created and distributed false capitalization tables that omitted the new share issuances.
