Jumbo CEO still in custody for money laundering; Supermarket chain denies involvement

Jumbo CEO Frits van Eerd is still in custody. He and various people from the motocross world are suspected in a major money laundering case, sources close to the criminal investigation told Financieele Dagblad.

Jumbo would not confirm that Van Eerd was arrested during a raid on his villa in Heeswijk-Dinther on Tuesday, only telling newspaper AD that “questions have been asked” of its CEO. The supermarket chain stressed that the investigation is not into Jumbo.

The Public Prosecution Service (OM) would also not confirm Van Eerd’s arrest. A spokesperson only said that all nine suspects arrested on Tuesday are still in restricted custody and are only allowed contact with their lawyer.

On Tuesday, the police and the Tax Authority’s investigative department FIOD raided various addresses in Noord-Brabant, Groningen, and Drenthe. According to AD, one of the addresses raided was Jumbo’s head office in Veghel.

The authorities consider a 58-year-old man from Aa en Hunze the prime suspect. According to AD, he is Theo E. - a big name in the Dutch motocross world. In the past, he was a team manager in motorcycle racing, including for the Jumbo TvE MX team sponsored by Van Eerd.

The suspects used real estate transactions, car trading, unexplained cash deposits, and sponsorship contracts in the motocross sport to launder large amounts, the OM believes. The OM also suspects them of VAT fraud in the car trade.

Theo E. was the “spider in the web” of this money laundering organization, the OM said. The other suspects, including Van Eerd, were allegedly involved to a greater or lesser extent.