usatoday24
The Civil Guard has dismantled a criminal organization dedicated to whitening capitals through cryptocurrencies. As reported by the agency, 23 people have been arrested in the operation and more than 30 million euros have been intervened, mostly in cryptoactives.
Ifade-Yuzuk. That is the denomination that this operation has received whose beginnings date back to 2023, when the investigation began thanks to the “identification of suspicious actions within the framework of the Civil Guard prevention work” in certain Spanish airports. The criminal organization was “perfectly structured and hierarchized” and composed of at least 52 members.
What did they do? As explained by the Civil Guard in A statementthe organization was dedicated to money laundering using crypts as a vehicle. The group “bought” the cash obtained illegally and compensated by cryptocurrency transactions, charging a commission between two and three percent.
Subsequently, that cash was “sold” and compensated in cryptocurrencies paying similar commissions. “In this way, the organization managed to maintain stable balance in the wallets used, guaranteeing a cadence between four and six weekly operations, with a flow of three million euros a week,” says the Civil Guard.
Operation Ifade-Yuzuk | Image: Civil Guard
The money trail. The cash came from the sale of goods introduced in Spain opaquely for the tax authorities, such as falsifications. These products ended in Badalona (Barcelona) or Manises (Valencia) establishments, although the majority of premises involved were in a Madrid town.
The money was extracted from Spain through commercial flights, clandestinely or through statements of means of payment. The main destination was Cyprus, although later criminals began using road transport to sell illicit money both in Spain and in France and Portugal. As the Civil Guard details, “cash deliveries have been detected in different Spanish provinces (Madrid, Barcelona, Malaga, Castellón, Valencia and Alicante), Cyprus, France and Portugal.”
Operation Ifade-Yuzuk | Image: Civil Guard
An operation of several countries. Operation IFADE-YUZUK has had two phases. One in the Ortrew of 2024, dedicated to the disarticulation of the organization in Spain, Cyprus and France; and another in November focused on its customers. The coordination of the judicial and fiscal authorities of Spain, Chipre and Germany, as well as the Europol and Eurojust, has been required.
It has also cooperated with T3 TCE (initiative of Tron, Tether and TRM Labs companies), thanks to which the preventive blockade of more than 26.4 million USDT “has been achieved; and with Binance, which has blocked “29 accounts with balances worth approximately $ 152,000.”
Operation Ifade-Yuzuk | Image: Civil Guard
The result. All this operation has been paid with 90 records in homes and social venues, of which 77 have been in Spain. 23 arrests have also been carried out, 20 of which have been in national territory. Finally, it should be noted that numerous computer devices, 36 vehicles, 8.2 million euros effective, 27 million euros in cryptocurrencies, real estate and more than two million in bank accounts have been intervened.
Images | Civil Guard
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings