(Kitco News) – Three people have now been arrested and charged this week following a massive seizure of cash, drugs, and gold bullion in Dublin, Ireland.
Jelena Idele, 58, and Svethana Bahtajeva, 38, are the second and third individuals to be charged as part of an investigation into last week's massive seizure of gold, money, and narcotics in the Irish capital. The first suspect to be charged was Farhats Bathijevs, a male in his 50s, who appeared in court on Monday.
On Saturday, September 28, local police announced that they had seized €1.4 million ($1.545 million) in gold bullion, €460,000 ($507,000) in cash, and €210,000 ($232,000) in suspected cocaine following a two-day search operation in the Dublin area.
"This seizure is another example of the fine work members of [local law enforcement] do on a daily basis to keep our communities safe," Chief Superintendent Garrett Billings of the DMR Regional office told reporters on Saturday. "This operation, conducted by the Dublin Crime Response Team, is intended to target, disrupt, and bring to justice those who cause significant harm in society.”
Bathijevs is facing ten charges, including three relating to money laundering, along with fraud and drug-related charges. On Wednesday, Idele and Bahtajeva were both charged with multiple money laundering offenses, along with drug charges, and are also accused of being in possession of 18 kg (635 ounces) of gold bullion.
Both women were remanded into custody and are scheduled to appear in court on Friday.
As gold prices continue to rise, the yellow metal has become the asset of choice for a wide range of criminal activities, including drug smuggling, money laundering, and tax evasion. According to a report from consulting firm Alvarez and Marshall published in June, forensic practitioners confront multiple layers of challenges from precious metals.
“Money laundering is the process of making illegally obtained gains appear ‘clean,’ and typically follows a three-stage process — placement, layering, and integration,” said authors Henry Chambers and Benjamin Teo in Following the Midas Trail – Laundering Money Through Gold and Precious Metals. “Because of the scrutiny given to bank transactions, criminals may turn to gold or other precious metals when they need to launder money.”
Chambers and Teo argue that precious metals are attractive assets for criminals who wish to conceal the origins of any illegally obtained money, and they ask whether it is even possible for forensic investigators such as themselves to trace the movement of illicit funds through the movement of gold.
“The international Financial Action Task Force (FATF) designates dealers in precious metals and precious stones, amongst others, as Designated Non-Financial Business Professionals (DNFBPs) and recommends implementing a risk-based anti-money laundering (AML) approach in these industries,” they wrote.
Chambers and Teo note that a large part of the AML-KYC burden in the present-day precious metals market system falls to DNFBPs.
“The attractiveness of gold as both an asset and as a vessel for money laundering not only requires its gatekeepers to remain vigilant, but also protect the market’s reputation by understanding its patterns and trends,” they concluded. “It is in these stakeholders’ interests to engage with the regulators and enforce relevant requirements, to avoid prosecution and pecuniary penalties, to maintain their status as a reputable business, and to prevent criminals from laundering gold.”
