MAURITIUS FCC seize assets of 2 individuals who laundered money from drug trafficking

The Financial Crimes Commission (FCC) recently confiscated several real and personal properties in two court orders, which were successfully executed.

They targeted two individuals convicted of crimes related to the laundering of money from drug trafficking.

These two seizures illustrate the FCC's ongoing commitment to preventing financial criminals and drug traffickers from profiting from the fruits of their illicit activities. All confiscated assets will be independently appraised and then sold through a public, transparent, and fair tender.

🟦 Joseph Noël André case: a house and a boat seized in Albion

On Thursday, June 12, the CTF took possession of a residential property on Laurier Avenue in Albion and a speedboat, both acquired with illicit funds. These assets had been financed by Joseph Noël André, who was sentenced on August 5, 2024, to 12 months in prison on each of the six money laundering charges. Sentences must be served concurrently. According to the file elements, between March 9 and 18, 2016, Joseph Noël André had transferred about Rs 2.4 million to a certain Parvin Appadoo to finance the boat purchase, officially in the name of Mike Didier Brasse. The latter was sentenced to seven years in prison in Reunion Island in November 2019, after being intercepted with 100 kg of drugs worth Rs 150 million.

In 2016, Joseph Noël André also bought and renovated a house with criminal funds, although it was registered in the name of his concubine. He pleaded not guilty, stating that the money came from his pig farm. However, Magistrate Bibi Razia Jannoo-Jaunbocus, of the Financial Crimes Division, stressed the seriousness of the offences and the international ramifications of the case, thus justifying a firm prison sentence.

🟦 Joseph James Stevenson Perrine case: a property of Rs 2.6 M seized in Baie-du-Tombeau

In a second case, the FCC executed a clawback order issued by the Supreme Court at the request of the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), relating to a property valued at Rs 2,665,000 in Baie-du-Tombeau, built on a 385 m² plot.

The property belongs to Joseph James Stevenson Perrine, sentenced in 2012 to seven years in prison for possession of heroin (33.3 g), electronic weighing equipment and two stun weapons. The FIU demonstrated that the purchase and renovation of the property had been carried out during the period when the person concerned was actively involved in drug trafficking activities. Before the Supreme Court, Joseph James Stevenson Perrine tried to justify the origin of the funds by referring to various jobs – mason, painter, then taxi driver – but could not produce concrete evidence or verifiable references. He could not remember the taxi's registration number or find his former employer.

These two seizures illustrate the FCC's ongoing commitment to preventing financial criminals and drug traffickers from profiting from the fruits of their illicit activities. All confiscated assets will be independently appraised and then sold through a public, transparent, and fair tender.

SOURCE

https://lexpress.mu/s/la-fcc-confisque-plusieurs-biens-lies-au-blanchiment-dargent-546396?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=LinkedIn#Echobox=1750161908-1