Individual arrested in Barcelona for being part of Chinese group capable of money laundering €1m daily

Spanish national police have arrested five people, one of them in Barcelona, for being part of an alleged Chinese criminal organization that was capable of money laundering over €1 million daily.

These sums came from illegal activities related to crimes against industrial property, fraud, and prostitution. The group allegedly operated across Europe and had several close allies to move the cash in cars or hidden in luggage on commercial flights.

Police obtained around €160,000 in cash in several locations across Spain, including Barcelona, Madrid, and Valencia. 

The investigation started in 2021, when French police discovered €500,965 in cash hidden in a car driven by a man in Perpignan, just north of the French-Spanish border.

Agents were able to link the cash with a Chinese businessman living in Spain, who allegedly led a criminal organization focused on money laundering across Europe.