Police busted a massive £215m money laundering ring in the Northern Ireland

PSNI police arrested 7 individuals following one of the biggest money-laundering investigations in the history of Northern Ireland. A senior detective describes it as one of the significant live money-laundering investigations in the UK which involve £215m.

The chief police officer said, “During our extensive investigation we identified that a significant volume of suspected criminal cash was being laundered out of the country through a number of shell companies and bank accounts held here in Northern Ireland. The investigation has identified over 50 companies and over 140 bank account.”

He further added that approximately £215m was deposited to thousands of bank accounts across the UK and also transferred out of the country through different foreign exchange companies since 2011. 

According to Ian Wilson, money laundering is one of the critical enablers of organized criminality. And the majority of this black money is derived from different criminal activities. 

Several other agencies were involved in this investigation, including the Garda economic crime branch, Criminal Assets Bureau, National Crime Agency, the United Kingdom Financial Investigation Unit, Her Majesty’s Revenue, and Customs and Europol.