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Google AI ,
Imagine you have a box of dirty money from overseas that you want to make look clean in Singapore. The Fujian gang acted like a special kind of laundry service for this dirty money. Here's how it might work using a simple analogy:
The "Dirty Sock" Analogy:
* Dirty Socks (Overseas Illegal Money): The money made from illegal activities overseas is like a pile of dirty socks. It's obvious where it came from (it smells bad, has stains). You can't just put it in your clean laundry basket.
* The Laundry Machine (Singapore's Financial System): Singapore has a well-established financial system with banks, businesses, and investment opportunities – like a big, efficient laundry machine.
* The Fujian Gang (The Laundry Service): The gang acted as the "laundry service." They didn't directly put the dirty socks (money) straight into the washing machine. Instead, they used tricks to make them appear clean first.
* The "Cleaning" Process:
* Mixing with Clean Clothes (Legitimate Businesses): They might set up or use real businesses in Singapore (like shops or investment companies).
They would then mix their dirty money with the income from these legitimate businesses, making it harder to tell which money was dirty. It's like mixing a few dirty socks with a lot of clean clothes in the wash.
* Changing the Appearance (Complex Transactions):
They would move the money around through many different accounts and investments, sometimes using shell companies (companies that exist on paper but don't do much real business).
This is like taking the dirty socks and putting them through so many different spins and cycles in the washing machine that it becomes harder to see the original dirt.
* Using Others (Helping Friends): They could also help other criminals clean their dirty money by using the same methods through their Singaporean network. It's like offering their laundry service to other people with dirty socks.
* Clean Socks (Laundered Money): After going through this "laundry service," the money appears clean. It's now in the Singaporean financial system, seemingly coming from legitimate sources.
These "clean socks" can now be used to buy property, luxury goods, or make further investments without raising as many suspicions about their original source.
In short, the Fujian gang used Singapore's financial system and various methods like mixing illegal funds with legitimate business income and using complex transactions to disguise the origin of dirty money from overseas, making it appear clean.
They might have also offered this "cleaning service" to other criminals.