Louis Vuitton’s Dutch arm agrees to pay 500,000 euros to settle a money laundering case

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THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — The Dutch branch of French-based luxury goods maker Louis Vuitton has agreed to pay half a million euros ($595,000) in an out-of-court settlement linked to a money laundering investigation, the Netherlands' national public prosecution office announced Thursday.

Prosecutors said the fashion house did not adhere to a law aimed at preventing money laundering and terrorism financing when a 36-year-old woman allegedly repeatedly used different names as she spent cash “on luxury goods at retailers such as Louis Vuitton.” The woman is suspected of spending more than 2 million euros in criminal proceeds from August 2021 to February 2023.

“Louis Vuitton violated the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act ... and did not do enough to prevent money laundering by its customers. For an extended period, the company failed to properly identify the customers who repeatedly came to spend large sums of cash," the prosecutors' statement said.

A spokesperson at Louis Vuitton's head office in Paris did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Prosecutors alleged that after buying luxury handbags, the woman sent them to China to be resold to make it look like the proceeds came from legitimate trade.

A money laundering case is ongoing against the woman and two other suspects, including a former sales assistant at Louis Vuitton in the Netherlands. The assistant is alleged to have tipped off the woman when new and expensive bags came into stock and warned her if her spending exceeded limits that would require Louis Vuitton to alert authorities about suspect payments.

The settlement with the Dutch arm of Louis Vuitton was reached out of court “to free up limited courtroom space at the Rotterdam District Court,” prosecutors said.