Madrid and Paris, EU. Spain’s central High Court ordered the confiscation of real estate assets and the contents of bank accounts for Rifaat al-Assad and 16 members of his family, that is, his children and his wives. More Assad assets have been confiscated in Paris according to EU authorities.
The Court order issued by Judge José de la Mata is linked to a formal French investigation that begun in 2016, relating to allegations of concealing stolen assets, money laundering, and fiscal fraud.Rifaat al-Assad, 79, is the uncle of Bashar al-Assad.
All in all, on Tuesday, Spanish authorities froze 76 accounts and ordered the seizure of 15 properties located in Andalusian resort towns, especially Marbella and Puerto Banus, on Costa del Sol.
Rifaat Assad previously served as Vice President of Syria, until his brother and President, Hafez al-Assad, send him to exile after a botched coup. When he left Syria in 1984, he was given a parting sum amounting to €300 million.
Spanish Investigators have discovered a real estate portfolio of 503 properties linked to the Assads, in France and Spain, but also Curaçao, Liechtenstein and Luxembourg, valued approximately at €691 million were discovered by a combined task force of agents from a number of European Union member nations.
Members of the Spanish Civil guard executed a search at the Gray de Albion’s building in Marbella, Malaga, Andalusia, Spain, 04 April 2017. The High Court has launched an operation against the assets of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s uncle, Rifaat al-Assad for alleged crimes of money laundering and criminal association.
Judge Jose de la Mata ordered the search of 15 properties in wealthy Andalusian resort towns; he also froze bank accounts held by 16 individuals, and another 76 deposits held in the name of legal entities, media reported. Assad has not been charged at this point.