The main suspect in the money laundering case, in which Jumbo boss Frits van Eerd is also a suspect, will be released. The council chamber of the court in Assen determined this on Wednesday. 58-year-old Theo Eggens – a former driver and well-known figure in motorsport – had been detained for two months.
The main suspect from Aa en Hunze is suspected of being involved in various constructions in which money and goods have been laundered. This happened through real estate transactions, car dealings, unexplained cash deposits and sponsorship contracts in motocross sports, according to the OM. According to the judiciary, ‘large amounts of cash have been seized’.
Eggens is seen as the spider in the web. He was the only suspect still in custody. Van Eerd has already been released from pre-trial detention after being detained for a number of days.
Know eachother
Theo Eggens and Frits van Eerd would know each other from the motocross world. Jumbo sponsored the team where E. was team leader for a while. Sources report to the Dagblad van het Noorden that E. often supplied engines to Frits van Eerd for the large collection that the Jumbo top man had.
A Hummer and a trailer were seized in September behind the Golfwinkel on the Jumbo site in Veghel. Van Eerd would have bought this from Theo Eggens.
As part of the investigation, searches were carried out on 13 September in various houses and businesses in Groningen, Drenthe and Brabant. Hundreds of thousands of euros in cash were found in the house of Frits van Eerd in Heeswijk-Dinther.
The Public Prosecution Service takes into account that the investigation will take a long time. “This is partly due to the large amount of seized goods,” the OM said in an explanation.
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