Massage parlors allegedly used to disguise money laundering operations

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

The First High Criminal Court has scheduled October 14 to deliver its verdict in a high-profile money laundering case involving a general manager and several Asian investors accused of channeling more than BD138,000 in illicit funds linked to prostitution.

According to the Public Prosecution, the defendants, along with a deceased accomplice, allegedly operated a network of massage parlors in Bahrain between 2019 and 2023.

Investigators said the establishments were used as a front to collect cash and card payments generated from prostitution activities.

The proceeds were then funneled through bank transfers and currency exchanges to disguise their illegal origin.

Evidence presented in court indicated that a large portion of the funds was transferred abroad, with the defendants profiting from the transactions.

Investigators also noted that many of the clients engaged in prostitution were from the same countries to which the funds were remitted.

Conviction

The defendants and the deceased accomplice had earlier been convicted of charges including inciting and facilitating prostitution, profiting from the exploitation of others, and managing establishments used for prostitution.

They were each sentenced to two years in prison in that case. The court will now decide whether the accused are guilty of laundering BHD138,747 linked to the same activities.