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It started with a car driving at a red light and ended with the discovery of millions of crowns of criminal acts.
In a somewhat unusual verdict at the Oslo District Court, a couple has been convicted of stealing millions of crowns without the police having proven what criminal acts the money came from.
The convict, now 25, had no work income since 2016. Yet he had millions of crowns at his disposal and lived a life in fancy clothes and expensive vacation trips.
Although the proceeds of criminal acts must be confiscated, the police and prosecutors consider that they do not have the necessary legal authority to do so effectively. More on that later in the case.
I think it was drug money
The 25-year-old has been sentenced to one year in prison. In addition, it must endure the state confiscating 1.5 million crowns, a car and a number of expensive designer clothes. The woman he lived with was also convicted and must hand over large sums of money.
In the case, there were indications that the money could have come from the sale of drugs.
– We have not been able to provide evidence for this, but there are not many alternatives that require that much cash, says police lawyer Carol Johanne Sandbye, who prosecuted the case in the Oslo District Court.
The man was convicted of cure and the woman was convicted of cure for gross negligence.
Follow the money
It started in February 2019, when police stopped a driving car at a red light. There were four men in the car. They all carried cash. One of them had 50,000 crowns in a bag under the car seat.
Police suspected that the money came from the sale of drugs. No drugs were found in the car, but a drug dog tagged in a bag in the car, and several of the people had previously been convicted of drug-related crimes. Subsequently, drugs were also seized at the home of one of them.
The suspicion allowed the police to search people’s homes. In the house of the now condemned, the police took the jackpot.
Dalsbergstien in Oslo. Bislett Stadium can be seen through the trees on the other side of the recreation area.
Photo: (Google Street view)
Put money scattered
When the police entered the convict’s apartment at Dalsbergstien in Oslo, his partner was asleep. In the apartment, the police found several large sums of money:
- Next to the television in the living room, there was a bundle of 50,000 crowns with elastic around a water pipe.
- On top of the closet was a Steen og Strøm with NOK 348,300 tied with elastic.
- On the dining room table were 1,400 loose crowns.
- In a pink suitcase there was NOK 39,600.
In the living room there was also a cloth bag of the same type that had been used to pack the money.
In addition, several expensive designer items were found from, among others, Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana, Versace, Balmain, Canada Goose, Moncler, Parajumper, Gucci, Valentino, Christian Louboutin and Balenciaga.
Police found T-shirts from brands such as Burberry, Balmain, Polo, Dolce & Gabbanna and Moncler. They are T-shirts for several thousand crowns each. Two of the garments had the price tag. They cost 2,360 and 1,960 euros respectively, which corresponds to approx. 26,000 crowns and 22,000 crowns.
Photo: (Police)
Police found the large amounts by checking the bank accounts the 25-year-old had at his disposal. In total, the police found 1.7 million crowns that have now been confiscated from him and his partner. In addition, a Volvo V40 and several expensive designer clothes have been seized.
The groom had many vacations
The condemned person’s partner was convicted in the same trial of gross negligent robbery of 200,000 crowns and received 101 hours of community service.
At trial, she said she thought her boyfriend’s money came from working in the family business, and she didn’t react to all the money or the fact that she had so many vacations.
She said that her boyfriend used to transfer small amounts to her and that he had paid her for several vacation trips. New Years 2017/2018 celebrated in Paris.
In 2018 they were on vacation in Thailand, Spain, Dubai and Morocco, and in 2019 they moved together to Dalsbergstien where the police found all the valuables.
This explained to the convict about the money.
The 25-year-old himself explained that he had several explanations for why he had so much money, even though he was not working:
- He said that a large amount of money came from buying and selling watches and cars.
- I had won money playing
- Borrow money from friends and family.
- Others had used bank cards and accounts in their name.
- The 50,000 crowns that were found under the seat, had to buy a car.
- The bag with 348,000 crowns in the apartment was left by a friend.
- He borrowed money to set up a cafe. A cafe had been rented in the apartment.
Time-consuming research
Police lawyer Sandbye says the investigation of the case has taken a long time.
– He gave an explanation, but had no documentation or names of buyers of watches or cars. There are no people we can question, he says.
Many jeans were also found in the apartment. These also cost many thousands of crowns per piece.
Photo: (Police)
However, the police had to investigate the allegations.
– It was the task of the prosecution to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that the money did not come from legal activities. This case took a long time because the convicts had many complaints about the sale of cars and watches that we had to follow up.
– We found no traces of sales of watches or cars. Or we found a hint of a watch sale, but nothing that could be 100 percent proven, says Sandbye.
Important to prevent crime
– If they find out how attractive he is, it’s too late, said former gangster Mikael Ali in an interview on Nettavisen in July. He told how he himself has recruited boys to commit crimes, among other things, showing a lot of money.
A lot of money and expensive brand clothes are closely linked to the sale of weapons and drugs and give high status in the street environment. Below you can watch popular music videos that reflect this street culture. The article continues below.
– A lot of money and a luxurious lifestyle is what attracts many to a life of crime. Therefore, confiscation is preventive, when there is a legal basis for it. The legislator has also said so with the forfeiture institute, Sandbye says.
The Norwegian authorities are also debating how easy or difficult it should be to seize money believed to have come from criminal acts. Today, money can only be confiscated through criminal means, where the tax authority must, as in this case, prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the money comes from criminal offenses.
Invoices in the drawer
In 2016, the Ministry of Justice and Emergency Preparedness issued a proposal for legal norms for civil law forfeiture. The background was that the authorities cannot confiscate as much money from criminal acts as one would like.
In the case of civil forfeiture, much of the burden of proof would have fallen on the person holding the securities. The person must have proven then that the money comes from a legal activity, and not like today, where the tax authority has the entire burden of proof.
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The Office of the Attorney General of the Republic (external pdf) was one of the instances that stated that it is necessary to facilitate the confiscation of money derived from crime.
The Norwegian Bar Association (external pdf), on the other hand, was skeptical about the weakening of the evidentiary requirements for confiscation of funds, which a new law provides.
Currently, the invoice is in the drawer. Meanwhile, the confiscation of criminal money is decreasing. Statistics from the Norwegian Police Directorate, presented by the Free Trade Union Movement in 2019, showed that the confiscation had been reduced from NOK 198 million in 2017 to NOK 108 million in 2018. The number of cases, approximately 8,000, remained stable .
The online newspaper has tried to contact the convicted lawyer to find out if the verdict will be appealed or final.
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