British Authorities Seize Dinosaur Skeletons and London Apartments in Money Laundering Case

After reaching a settlement with the Chinese citizen Su Binhai, British authorities seized three complete dinosaur skeletons and nine flats in London as part of a money-laundering investigation; the total value of the assets is estimated at about £12 million.

Context of the settlement and asset seizure

Under the terms of the agreement, Su Binhai agreed to hand over two Allosaurus skeletons and one Stegosaurus skeleton with a total value of £12 million. In addition to them, nine flats in London and eleven Chinese artifacts were also seized. A representative of the National Crime Agency said that Binhai would retain about 25% of the proceeds from their eventual sale.

Bloomberg also reports that Su Binhai had been sought in connection with a large-scale money-laundering case tied to Singapore. According to regional authorities, assets totaling about $2.3 billion were seized, and ten people of Chinese origin were convicted of involvement in illegal money laundering connected with international online gambling platforms. An Interpol arrest warrant request was canceled after Binhai and his wife agreed to hand over their assets to the state as part of a broad deal with investigators. Su Binhai’s lawyers declined to comment.

It is also reported that the three dinosaur skeletons will be kept in storage facilities in the London area until the completion of the relevant procedures.

International dimension of the investigation

This agreement underscores the international character of money-laundering investigations, where assets from different jurisdictions may become subject to seizure as part of cross-border law enforcement cooperation.