On 5 November, British police seized unusual assets worth more than £12 million (about $15.6 million), including the remains of fossil Dinosaurs. The confiscation was part of a settlement agreement with a Chinese citizen named Su Binghai, who is suspected of being involved in a massive money laundering scandal.
At the hearing on November 4, a lawyer from the National Criminal Police Agency (NCA) said that according to the agreement, Su Binghai agreed to give up 3 complete remains, along with 9 apartments in London. However, a notable detail is that Su Binghai will be allowed to keep 25% of the total proceeds from selling all of these assets.
Su Binghai was previously a wanted figure for his involvement in the largest money laundering case in Singapore's history. However, an Interpol wanted notice for this person has been removed by the Singapore government. The move comes after Su Binghai and his wife agreed to give up their assets to the Singapore government, as part of a larger deal involving several other remaining suspects on the run.
This money laundering scandal has shaken the Singapore financial system. The country's authorities seized cash, real estate, cryptocurrency and other assets with a total value of about 2.3 billion USD. Ten Chinese-born people were sentenced to prison last year for money laundering earned from illegal gambling activities abroad.
Back to the case in the UK, the seized bonus bones date back to 145 to 157 million years old, including a maternal and child Allosaurus bonus, along with a Stegosaurus bonus. 11 Chinese artifacts, including Minh Dynasty vases and bronzechangers, were also among the seized assets.
This case was handled by the NCA under civil procedures to recover assets, not a criminal case. Accordingly, the agency uses an increasingly popular legal tool in the UK, forcing individuals to prove that their suspected assets are legal. Su Binghai's lawyer declined to comment after the hearing.
