Three suspects were indicted on Thursday, June 8 in Paris in an investigation into suspicions of VAT fraud "of European scale relating to the resale of used vehicles," announced in a statement the European prosecutor's office.
The three suspects were indicted "by a European delegated prosecutor, including charges of money laundering committed by an organized gang and forgery," says the European prosecutor's office. According to a source close to the case, "none of the three indicted has been placed in pre-trial detention, but the European delegated prosecutor in charge of the case has ordered a bond against them".
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On Wednesday and Thursday, "the European prosecutor's office in Paris carried out seizure operations and the arrest of three people suspected of being involved in a Europe-wide VAT fraud on the resale of second-hand vehicles," it is detailed. During the searches carried out at the homes of the suspects, "three Porsche vehicles, cash, several Rolex watches, jewelry and luxury handbags, were seized" for an amount "of more than 775,000 euros," it is specified. "Seizure operations took place simultaneously in Romania on bank accounts," reports the European Public Prosecutor's Office. The investigations in France have been entrusted to the Service d'enquêtes judiciaires des finances (SEJF). "Investigations are also ongoing in other member states participating in the EPPO," the statement said.
