Danish police arrested 14 people in Copenhagen on Wednesday in a case involving more than 100 million kroner in money laundering and 24 million kroner in VAT fraud linked to a luxury goods store in the city center.
The National Unit for Special Crime, known as NSK, carried out the coordinated operation, DR reports. Those arrested are 13 Chinese nationals living in Denmark and one Danish citizen, all suspected of belonging to the same network.
According to the police, the laundering took place through so-called trade-based money laundering. People in the network allegedly bought, or had others buy, high-value luxury items such as expensive designer bags with money originating from crime. The goods were then resold to individuals and companies in and outside Denmark to disguise the origin of the funds.
Investigators also suspect gross VAT fraud. Members of the network are believed to have unlawfully applied for VAT refunds on sales of luxury goods to foreign buyers. Two employees of the luxury goods store in central Copenhagen are among those arrested, suspected of handling sales and issuing purchase invoices with fictitious buyer identities and addresses.
Police inspector Trine Møller of NSK said the arrests targeted people believed to be closely tied together in a network behind extensive laundering through trade in luxury goods. As described in the police statement, the investigation points to a professional operation with well-defined roles, using various company structures, front men, advisers and other facilitators.
A large amount of cash was found and seized during the operation. The charges relate to a ten-year period running from July 2016 to August 2026.
Court appearance Thursday
Eleven of the 14 arrested will be brought before a judge at Copenhagen City Court. Prosecutors will request closed doors for the hearing, according to DR. Ekstra Bladet, citing Ritzau, reports that the hearings begin at 9:00 on Thursday and that prosecutors will ask for pre-trial detention.
Berlingske adds that the suspects are between 29 and 54 years old. The newspaper also notes that police are not disclosing which store is involved in the case. Fyens Stiftstidende carried the same core figures through Ritzau.
On its own website, politi.dk, NSK published the operation under the heading that a network has been arrested for trade-based money laundering through high-value goods. The unit describes the action as a comprehensive arrest operation following an ongoing investigation into laundering and VAT fraud involving luxury items. The police statement confirms the same period of suspected offenses, from July 2016 to August 2026.
The case is one of several recent Danish investigations into economic crime, including fraud arrests in Denmark reported earlier this year.
