Assets seized in Singapore's money laundering case swell to $1.76B

By Reuters September 21, 2023 | 11:17 pm PT

A court illustration of 10 foreigners accused of involvement in a August 2023 major money laundering operation in Singapore (clockwise from top left) Su Baolin, Su Haijin, Chen Qingyuan, Su Wenqiang, Lin Baoying, Zhang Ruijin, Wang Dehai, Su Jianfeng, Vang Shuiming and Wang Baosen. Photo via Reuters

The total value of assets seized in Singapore's biggest money laundering case has swelled to S$2.4 billion ($1.76 billion), police said on Wednesday.

The assets now include cash amounting to more than S$76 million, 68 gold bars, crypto currencies of more than S$38 million, more than 110 properties and 62 vehicles worth more than S$1.2 million.

Police did not give details of the fresh seizures and how they were found. Last month, 400 police officers ran simultaneous raids across Singapore and arrested 10 foreigners in an anti-money laundering swoop.

Police have said the 10 suspects were allegedly "laundering the proceeds of their overseas organized crime activities, including scams and online gambling".

During the raids, police seized S$1 billion worth of assets including bank accounts, S$23 million in cash, luxury homes, cars, bags, watches and two gold bars. The 10 also had various passports from Cyprus, Cambodia, Dominica, China, Turkey and Vanuatu.

The amount was updated to S$1.8 billion in early September as investigations led authorities to assets in Swiss banks.

The large amounts seized in the case has been the talk of the town in Singapore, which has attracted vast investments and private wealth since the pandemic but is generally know for having low crime rates.

Latest figures from the central bank show that total assets under management in Singapore rose 16% in 2021 to S$5.4 trillion, compared with a global increase of 12% to $112 trillion the same year.