Two Russian nationals have faced court in Queensland, accused of money laundering involving $2.3 million in cash and cryptocurrency.
Police allege Dmitry Rimskiy, 49, and Alexandra Pavlovna Bugrova, 46, laundered the money via hundreds of cash deposits at bank branches and ATMs across NSW, Queensland, Victoria, and South Australia in 2022, keeping each transaction below $10,000 to avoid banks alerting the authorities.
Both have been charged with three counts of dealing in the proceeds of crime with money or property worth more than $1 million.
About $1.95 million in cash and $425,000 in cryptocurrency, as well as substantial financial records, were found during a search at a home in Hope Island on the Gold Coast and a solicitor’s office in Surfers Paradise.
Australian Federal Police (AFP) Detective Superintendent Adrian Telfer said money laundering syndicates are sophisticated and operate a shadow economy of crime to increase their wealth.
“They are buying homes, commercial property and living large without the financial pressures felt by ordinary Australians,” he said in a statement.
“The money that is laundered through our economy bankrolls their lavish lifestyles and funds future crime, such as more illicit drug importations and weapons trafficking.”
The operation was run by the Gold Coast Joint Organised Crime Taskforce (GC JOCTF) is comprised of members of the AFP, Queensland Police Service (QPS), Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC), Department of Home Affairs (DHA), Australian Border Force (ABF), Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).
The pair have been granted bail ahead of a further appearance on June 3.
Last year, two Charles Sturt University financial crime researchers warned Australia’s financial crime laws were unfit for purpose and needed amending.
Jamie Ferrill, lecturer in Financial Crime Studies, and Milind Tiwari, postdoctoral research fellow in financial crime pointed out that, despite the passing of anti-money laundering laws in 2006, they did not cover a wide range of professionals operating outside the traditional financial system such as real estate professionals, lawyers, accountants, dealers in precious metals and stones, and trust and company service providers.
