The U.S. Department of Justice recently announced that more than $1.2 million in forfeited funds will be returned to the government of Romania following a Yelm-based international tax fraud and money laundering case.
The funds, according to a news release sent on Aug. 26, are the proceeds of a sale of property located in Washington that were owned by a Romanian couple who was extradited back to Romania at the request of that country’s government.
In 2012, Romanian authorities asked the United States to extradite Radu and Diana Nemes to Romania to face charges of participating in an organized criminal group and tax evasion, stated records filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.
“The charges alleged that the Nemeses executed a scheme to avoid Romanian taxes on imported diesel fuel by claiming the fuel was a lower grade of industrial and maritime fuel,” stated the release. “The untaxed income from the sale of the higher value diesel was laundered through a number of bank accounts and shell companies controlled by the Nemeses.”
Arrest warrants were issued in Romania for the couple in July 2012. Prior to the warrants, the Nemeses left Romania and had resided near Yelm “on a large piece of property with an elaborate bunker system,” stated the release.
After they were arrested in the United States, the Nemeses waived extradition and agreed to be returned to Romania in early 2014.
The couple’s assets in the U.S. were forfeited, stated the release. It included property in Yelm which were sold as part of the forfeiture process. The proceeds of the sale was $1,225,465 and will be returned through a petition for remission to the government of Romania as a recovery on the tax fraud.
“The overall tax fraud scheme resulted in $58.677 million loss to the Romanian government,” stated the release.
The case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jehiel Baer of the Western District of Washington in cooperation with the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section and the Office of International Affairs.
