Three workers detained in ICBC money laundering case granted bail

[Concorde]

Three workers detained in ICBC money laundering case granted bail

Reuters
February 23, 2016, 1:39 am

Spanish Civil Guard officers stand in front of the entrance of the headquarters of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) during a raid in Madrid, Spain, February 17, 2016. REUTERS/Sergio Perez

MADRID (Reuters) - Three people arrested last week as part of a money laundering probe into the Madrid branch of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China <1398.HK> <601398.SS> (ICBC) were released on bail on Monday, a Spanish court said, after several days in jail.

In total six workers at ICBC were detained last week and ordered to jail by a Madrid court after police, the Spanish tax agency and Europol launched an investigation into alleged money laundering through the branch.

Three were ordered to jail without bail while another three had to pay bail of 100,000 euros ($110,080). They had been in jail since Saturday, as a precautionary measure allowed under Spanish law while investigating judges work on a case.

The court said in a statement that the funds had now been paid. It did not detail the identities of those detained, nor did it specify who had been released. A source close to the investigation said that the three granted bail were all Chinese nationals.

Last week a legal source told Reuters that the six staff arrested faced charges of money laundering, fraud and tax crimes.

ICBC said on Monday that its Madrid branch was cooperating with Spanish authorities, adding that the unit was operating normally.

(Reporting by Jesus Aguado and Sarah White)