Europol cracks down on money laundering, arrests 200 in 13 countries

More than 200 people have been arrested in 31 countries as part of a global crackdown on money laundering, the European police authority Europol said on Wednesday.

The swoop by law enforcement authorities in European countries, as well as Australia and the United States took place between September and November and resulted "in the identification of 3,833 money mules alongside 386 money mule recruiters, of which 228 were arrested," Europol said in statement.

"More than 650 banks, 17 bank associations and other financial institutions helped to report 7,520 fraudulent money mule transactions, preventing a total loss of 12.9 million euros" ($14.3 million), the statement said.