Luxury cars, villa and golf cart seized as investigators look for € 3.4 million
Detectives have raided properties in eight locations across the country with a view to recovering money from a 50-year-old man with a conviction. Porsche cars, Land Rovers, Jaguars and several properties were seized. The man also faces 3.5-year prison sentence for a different conviction in Switzerland.
At eight different locations around the country the Antwerp prosecutor's office on Monday tried to track down 3.4 million euros in assets that a court had declared forfeited. Searches were conducted in Aartselaar, Antwerp, Brussels, Genk, Knokke-Heist, Lummen, Waregem, Zonhoven and Zoutleeuw. In the process, investigators seized a villa, several apartments, mopeds, electric bikes as well as a golf cart. A collection of luxury cars was also seized. The man owned a Porsche, Land Rover, Jaguar and Ford Mustang, amongst other vehicles.
Concealed capital
The seizures are linked to a 50-year-old from Antwerp living in Knokke-Heist (West Flanders). In 2013, he received a 3-year suspended sentence for forgery, fraud and money laundering. A sum of 3,709,413.23 euros was declared forfeited. "Currently, a sum of 3.4 million euros is still outstanding. The investigation also revealed that a voluntary payment was never made and the verdict also showed that the 50-year-old used several companies to shield his real assets," the Antwerp prosecutor's office said.
During searches, 7 people were stopped and will be questioned. The Antwerp prosecutor's office also points out the man still needs to serve a jail sentence. "The man still has to serve a 3.5-year sentence in Switzerland. It has now been decided that he can serve it in Belgium," says the prosecutor's office spokesman Kristof Aerts.
West Flanders prosecutors have also conducted six other searches in connection with another judicial investigation involving fraud and money laundering.