Netherlands brings organised crime banker to court

On Thursday, the trial of a man accused of running the largest underground banking network ever discovered in the Netherlands went to court. Thanas B, a 53-year-old Greek national of Albanian descent, was arrested at the Athens headquarters last year and extradited to the Netherlands.

Prosecutor Peter Huttenhuis told the broadcaster that B was suspected of playing a key role in a European banking network that handled funds obtained through crime. not specified. The underground banking system is vital for criminals who need to access and move illegal cash, mostly from the drug trade, Huttenhuis said.

Since no cash crosses borders, the risk is relatively low. Criminals provide funds to local banks, which are then paid to them by banks abroad, for example to cover the cost of a drug delivery.

Contact with the bankers was via so-called money brokers, to whom the criminal clients paid commissions.

Since 2021, police and prosecutors have been trying to disrupt the parallel banking system to make it more difficult for criminals to move and access funds.

Huttenhuis said the Dutch operations managed by Company B involve €1 billion in cash each year. “Every week huge shopping bags filled with millions of euros are shipped away,” he said.

The arrest and extradition of B is the biggest blow to the Dutch underground banking industry to date. From his base in Athens, B allegedly managed the couriers who delivered funds to his criminal clients. Most of them were legally employed handymen, painters or window cleaners with no criminal records who could use their own vans for the unnoticed deliveries.

Prosecutors said the money was counted and hidden in two warehouses in Wattlingen and Neufenap.

Several members of the Dutch criminal network have been convicted, including a Sentenced to seven years in prison. The Courier’s term of office will be from 2023 to 1 to 4 years.

The prosecutor’s office said it was unclear to what extent the arrests had eroded trust in the underground banking system. “We are hearing that the commissions that money brokers are asking bankers for are increasing. We are also seeing that large money transports are becoming increasingly difficult to organise. So we think this is having some impact,” Huttenhuis said.