Austria: Criminal Millions Cleansed through Online Gambling Outlets
The Austrian Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) has seized over €37 million in ill-gotten gains from the Italian Mafia in Vienna. This hefty sum originates from illegal activities in Italy and was intended to be "cleansed" in Austria through online gambling.
The BKA in Vienna regards this as the "largest sum of Mafia money ever seized" in Austria. Specifically, it amounts to €37.3 million, obtained during four major apartment raids. This discovery is part of a wider operation against the European betting mafia for money laundering and tax evasion.
This police action began in the middle of November and extended not only to Austria but also to Romania, Malta, and the Antilles, as well as Italy. Altogether, there were 68 arrests, including Mafia members, intermediaries, and business owners. In addition, 38 companies were closed down, 24 properties worth over a billion euros were confiscated, and 33 online platforms were blocked. Furthermore, €1.8 million was seized from two private accounts in Vienna and Innsbruck, which were then frozen.
The information that triggered these investigations came from the Italian public prosecutor's office in Reggio di Calabria, under the suspicion of money laundering on a scale of billions or even trillions. According to reports from Calabria, the "perpetrating group" consists of three "massive" criminal family clans from southern Italy.
Preliminary findings in Austria suggest that the Mafia intended to "clean" their funds here. Austria serves as a refuge for the Mafia, who are now under scrutiny.
Foundation of the gambling company
The organized crime also invested in Austria in various sectors, including real estate, securities, foundations, and gambling, particularly online betting companies. According to the statements of BKA investigating officer Andreas Holzer, a gambling company forms the basis of the illegal activities. Online casinos in Germany, however, were not affected by this raid.
Additionally, other potential money laundering channels are being considered, according to Holzer. Furthermore, there is talk of insurance fraud and extortion. What's worrying is that the clans do not cooperate directly, but only intersect in certain areas. One of them is "under pressure," says the investigator.
The money is "tainted," according to media reports, Vinzenz Kriegs-Au, the spokesperson for the BKA-Austria. The spokesperson also explains that several of the suspects arrested in Italy in November had previously been active in the gambling and betting industry in Austria.
Therefore, it is most likely that there is a very extensive criminal network. This case is so significant that Austrian Interior Minister Herbert Kickl has made a statement:
"This case once again highlights the importance of cross-border cooperation in the fight against organized crime."– Herbert Kickl, Austrian Interior Minister
The Neapolitan former boxer T. made headlines as one of the suspects arrested in Italy in mid-November. This operation was carried out in Calabria, Catania on Sicily, Bari in Apulia, and the capital Rome.
However, T. and his partner I. had been living in Austria for years, where they ran two successful online betting platforms. The Italian Mafia was also active in Austria. In Austria, T. had been working for a long time in a leading position for a "major online betting company" that was directly targeted by the authorities. Interestingly, T. was also involved in a leading position for the organization Federbet, which fights against the infiltration of sports events by criminal organizations. Although T. is not considered "a member of a well-known Italian mafia clan," he is now charged in Italy with "connections to the mafia" - a charge that carries a serious penalty there. Again, it is clear that the Italian Mafia continues to work with "friendly" foreign companies for money laundering purposes.
Maltese Gaming Mafia
It is no longer a secret that the gambling mafia also controls the reins in the tax haven Malta. Although the Maltese gaming authority (MAG) dismissed the intensifying accusations of European media as "exaggerated stories" in October, the issue cannot be ignored.
The accusations are based on the murder of investigative journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in October 2017 by a car bomb. For years, until her untimely death, the reporter had researched the workings of the gambling stronghold Malta - with the motto: The mafia launders millions through the gambling islands every year while the authorities look the other way. Continuing her research, she exposed "lies, corruption, money laundering, and tax evasion," putting her life at risk.
The concerns of European authorities are justified: Recently, even banned European bookmakers have allegedly received their Maltese license back, according to insiders, under flimsy justifications. According to reports in the Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ), organized crime is spreading across Malta and all of Europe. Further developments are still to come.
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