Money laundering at Zurich Casino: The thwarted plan of the robbers
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6 Feb 2025 •
Reading time: 2 minutes In November 2022, a daring attack took place in Aesch, Switzerland, where criminals blew up two cash machines, seizing a total of 400,000 Swiss francs (approximately 425,000 euros). Part of this money was marked with security ink, making the banknotes easily identifiable. To circumvent this problem, the perpetrators attempted to launder the funds by introducing them into the Swiss casino system.
The money laundering scheme
Sixteen days after the robbery, two young Dutch nationals, aged 20 and 22, arrived at Zurich Casino. They inserted a total of 72,300 Swiss francs (around 77,000 euros) into slot machines, thereby crediting their casino cards. After gambling a small portion of the sum, they withdrew the remainder in fresh banknotes, hoping to erase any trace of the money’s illicit origin.
The following day, the main suspect, a 20-year-old, attempted the same operation at another casino in Schaffhausen. However, the machines at this venue rejected the marked banknotes. Undeterred, he returned to Zurich Casino to repeat the attempt. In the meantime, the casino staff had detected the irregularity and alerted the authorities. The young man was apprehended by casino security and handed over to the police.
Arrests and investigations
Shortly after this arrest, another 18-year-old Dutchman was intercepted in possession of banknotes stained with security ink. The following week, four more individuals from the Netherlands were arrested upon their arrival in Zurich by various means, apparently intending to launder money using the same method.
The suspects denied any direct involvement in the robbery, claiming they were acting under the orders of a certain “Gily,” a person about whom they allegedly knew nothing further. However, forensic analysis confirmed that the banknotes in their possession originated from the Aesch attack.
Verdicts and penalties
The main 20-year-old defendant was sentenced to fifteen months in prison, much of which he had already served in pre-trial detention. In addition, he was banned from entering Switzerland for five years. The other defendants received suspended sentences and hefty fines amounting to around 4,000 euros.
Zurich Casino denied any negligence, asserting that its security and detection protocols were fully compliant with current regulations.