WILLEMSTAD - Notary Johnny Kleinmoed was sentenced to 18 months in prison on Friday for embezzlement and money laundering. The notary is accused of having transferred amounts of money from his escrow account without legal basis to his private account.
The funds deposited into the escrow account were amounts from clients of the notary's office. According to the notary himself, it was money that no longer had a destination. However, the Public Prosecution Service (OM) indicates that the money should have been returned to the rightful owners.
According to the Public Prosecution Service, an investigation by the Landsrecherche (National Investigation Team), in collaboration with the Tax Authorities, has shown that the third-party money account has been used for years as a kind of internal bank for private purposes.
It looks like Kleinmoedig will appeal the verdict. “All amounts appear to have been administratively justified, as evidenced by the financial forensic investigation submitted by the defense. It would be good to have three judges look at the case," said lawyers Jansen and Braam.