The criminal investigation into  Syd van Lienden, Camille van Gestel and Bernd Damme is moving abroad. The Public Prosecutor’s Office has seized bank accounts in Luxembourg and Switzerland of the trio and houses, cars and art and antiques here in the Netherlands. The total seizure has now risen to 19.5 million euros, a spokesman for the functional prosecutor’s office said.

The prosecutor confirms the seizure. For further questions, justice refers back to the Public Prosecutor’s office here.

The OM does not want to say exactly what was seized and Han Jahae, lawyer of the mask trio in the criminal investigation, does not yet know. “I haven’t seen the documents yet, they have to come from abroad. As far as the cars are concerned, I know that they are not very luxury cars, in my opinion they are just a BMW and a Tesla.”

Jahae is surprised that, after having already seized 11.5 million euros in the Netherlands in April, the OM is now only due to the homes, cars, art and foreign bills. “They weren’t secret accounts, they were in the financial statements and the tax returns, and the gentlemen didn’t try to sneak anything away,” he says. “It was also already known that they owned the cars and the houses.” According to the spokesman for the functional prosecutor’s Office, the investigation ’took the necessary time’ and the seizure could therefore only take place now.

The seizure is the latest installment in the legal battle for the face mask millions. This revolves around the Foundation Aid troops Alliance of Van Lienden, Van Gestel and Damme, who wanted to provide the Dutch care ’om niet’ with protective equipment against corona. The three are no longer directors of that foundation – Van Gestel has resigned, Van Lienden and Damme have been removed from their positions after another legal procedure.