Prosecutor accuses 22 defendants of money laundering in illegal Chinese clothing sales in Vila do Conde
The Public Prosecutor's Office has accused 22 defendants, including eight companies, of criminal association and money laundering linked to undeclared sales of clothing and footwear imported from China.
Undeclared sales network moved more than €88 million in Vila do Conde
The Public Prosecutor's Office has accused 22 defendants — including eight companies — of criminal association, money laundering and document falsification, in the context of an investigation into illegal sales of clothing and footwear imported from China in the Varziela industrial zone, in Vila do Conde, Porto district. The case was reported by Correio da Manhã.
The charge, dated 8 May, was brought by the Public Prosecutor's Office to the Regional Department of Investigation and Criminal Action (DIAP) in Porto, 1st section.
Goods imported from China via European warehouses
According to the District General Prosecutor's Office of Porto (PGDP), the goods in question — mostly clothing and footwear — are "originating from the People's Republic of China where they are manufactured" and were "imported into national territory via commercial warehouses located in European territory". The activity took place between 2023 and 2024, using warehouses and shops in the Varziela industrial zone.
The Public Prosecutor's Office emphasises that "the defendants operate at the level of an international-scale organisation" and requested, in the charge, accessory penalties of expulsion for defendants of Chinese nationality.
42 shell companies and deposits below €10,000
To conceal the origin of the funds, "42 shell companies were created and used, on several occasions using false documentation", states the PGDP, citing the charging order. In the bank accounts used for the movement of funds, deposits totalling more than €88 million were made.
Four of the defendants — designated as "money launderers" — had the function of dispersing funds outside national territory. Their tasks included the establishment of companies, the opening and use of bank accounts, as well as the collection of cash from commercial establishments and subsequent deposit into the shell accounts.
Deposits were always made in amounts below €10,000, "with the intention of circumventing the rules for preventing and detecting money laundering practices", directly at bank counters or via ATM, according to the charge.
Shop owners accused of tax evasion
The remaining defendants — the shop owners and their respective companies — are accused of "remitting sums resulting from undeclared taxable activity, through the circuit implemented by the organisation", evading tax declaration and payment of taxes.
Assets seized in the proceedings total more than €1.56 million. Three of the defendants are subject to liberty-restricting precautionary measures, two of whom are in pre-trial detention.
Source: Correio da Manhã