Two South Africans based in the United Kingdom were arrested on suspicion of money laundering, London Metropolitan police said on Wednesday.
Spokesperson Alan Crockford said the men, aged 60 and 52, had been arrested but have not yet been charged.
”Three people were arrested and two are South Africans males. They were arrested on suspicion of money laundering. They have not been charged yet but are in custody,” said Crockford.
The 60-year-old was arrested on Monday and the 52-year-old was arrested on Tuesday at Heathrow Airport. It was not clear whether the 52-year-old was leaving or had just arrived in the country, said Crockford.
On Monday, police investigated 7 000 safety-deposit boxes in several buildings in different parts of London, News24 reported.
The safety-deposit boxes contained drugs, weapons and large sums of money which police believed held the key to a series of serious crimes involving murder and paedophile gangs, shooting incidents, fraud and drug trafficking.
Most of the boxes were allegedly leased to the alleged masterminds by the Safe Deposit Centres company.
The Daily Telegraph said the two South Africans were both directors of the company and had been living in the UK since the 1980’s. – Sapa