"The PJ arrested a 35-year-old man this Wednesday in Vilamoura, following a warrant issued by the Faro Public Prosecutor's Office, as part of an ongoing investigation into a group dedicated to laundering illicit proceeds using the Portuguese financial system," the police said in a statement.

According to the authority responsible for the criminal investigation, the man, using several false identities, established numerous Portuguese companies, through which he opened multiple bank accounts at various national credit institutions.

The suspect "placed, circulated, and integrated into his assets a significant amount of resources, worth more than €500,000," according to the statement.

According to the Judiciary Police (PJ), the investigation, led by the Judiciary Police's Southern Directorate, found that the group has ties to several European countries, namely Belgium, Spain, Italy, and France.

This group, using the creation and use of false identification documents and passports, established "front" companies and opened hundreds of bank accounts worldwide, through which they laundered illicit funds from computer fraud crimes, according to the statement.