The money was in the bank accounts of the key players in the face masks case, a spokesperson for the Public Prosecution Office explains when asked. “It’s about the money that was transferred from the foundation to their own accounts.”
first step
According to an OM spokesperson, this is the first step. “The money is now secured so they can’t spend it while the investigation is still ongoing,” he added.
Suspicions against the SHA Board of Directors were expanded to include embezzlement, where fraud was already suspected.
Investigation started
In February, the Public Prosecution Office announced that it had launched a criminal investigation, among other things, with (former) directors of the foundation, including businessman Siewert van Linden.
Van Linden was arrested at the beginning of March over the investigation of the mouth-masks deal. He was released two days later, but remained a suspect in the case. Investigations are still ongoing.
Randstad Declaration
The reason for the investigation was the announcement made by Randstad at the end of December 2021. The recruitment firm made the individuals available to ACF because it was believed to be for charity.
However, it later emerged that Van Lienden and other (former) managers had founded a private company that was used to buy and sell face masks. As a result, he and the other founders would have earned millions from the mouth-mask deal they had with the Department of Health.
