Pubdate: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON) Webpage: Copyright: 2004 The Ottawa Citizen Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/326 Pubdate: Thursday, April 1, 2004 Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON) Contact: http://www.canada.com/ottawa/ottawacitizen/ Author: Ron Corbett, The Ottawa Citizen Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/raids.htm (Drug Raids) 'THERE IS NOTHING HERE FOR POLICE' Accused Money Launderer 'Hard Working And Intelligent', Boyfriend Says While their six-year-old daughter played with dolls on a kitchen floor, the boyfriend of alleged money-laundering kingpin Mai Le said yesterday he was trying to raise bail money to bring her home. "I am told (Ms. Le) will be in jail until next week at least," said Lansom Nguyen. "They will decide then whether she can be released on bail. I am hoping she will be released. Otherwise, I am raising our daughter on my own." Mr. Nguyen, 43, lived with Ms. Le, 38, in a large house on Prince of Wales Drive, which police raided early yesterday morning. By late afternoon, the only indication police had been there was a copy of a search warrant left on the kitchen table. Mr. Nguyen said police took a few boxes of business documents from the house and not much else. "This is a family home," said Mr. Nguyen. "There is nothing here for the police to take. They really didn't need 10 police cars." Aside from Ms. Le, her boyfriend and children (she has two teenage daughters from a previous marriage), her parents (who are currently in Vietnam) and some of her six brothers and sisters also lived in the house. Eight of Ms. Le's family members were arrested along with her yesterday, including a sister and two brothers. The house itself is large and well-appointed inside. There is a large-screen television in a family room, a marble kitchen island and expensive wood furniture throughout. Yet it has the chaotic, unkempt feel of a family house, with toys scattered everywhere, and meal dishes still left on the island. There are family photos as well, including one large, studio photo in the main hallway, of the Le family taken four years ago. Ms. Le's brothers, sisters, children and parents are in the photo, all well attired and groomed, a happy and prosperous looking family. According to Mr. Nguyen, his girlfriend arrived in Canada from Vietnam about 15 years ago. Ms. Le came with her family, although he said he is not sure what her parents did for a living. He said her father is retired, and spends much of his time in Vietnam. Mr. Nguyen said he knows little about Ms. Le's business, other than it "had something to do with currency exchange," and that she had a couple of offices in Ottawa. Police allege that Ms. Le spearheaded the laundering of $5 million U.S. a week in drug profits through a string of currency transfer and finance companies. Police say Ms. Le's money laundering took place mainly through a business called Vivi Fashion, which operated on Pamilla Street in Little Italy until January. Mr. Nguyen said he now runs Vivi Fashion on Wellington Street. "I am clean. I have done nothing illegal, otherwise I wouldn't be sitting here," he said. "I own a legitimate business, and the police must know that. This whole drug kingpin thing, calling Mai Le a drug kingpin, it's ridiculous." Ms. Le also has a boarder, a Vietnamese student attending Carleton University, who expressed surprise at the police raid. "Mai Le doesn't even smoke," said Vinh Nguyen. "She is a mother of three, and I have never seen anything in this house that would make you think drug dealers are living here." The search warrant for the house on Prince of Wales said police were looking for documents from numerous companies in Ottawa, including MDN Currency Transfer, Everest Financial Services, Canasia Financial Services, Metropole Express Money Exchange and Canada Financial Services. "I honestly don't know how her business works," said Mr. Nguyen. "I don't even know how she got into that line of work. But she is very intelligent, very hard-working, and it never seemed surprising that this was what she was doing." He says he has yet to speak to Ms. Le, but he is hoping to get the chance today. As he talks, his daughter is playing with dolls in a far corner of the room, glancing at her father from time to time. She is called Vivi, after his clothing store, and she has her mother's good looks and bright, wide eyes. Mr. Nguyen declines a request to conduct the interview elsewhere; he simply sighs, says he has eaten nothing today, the stress is already building, and as for going somewhere else: "Why bother. I think everyone in Ottawa is going to know all about us soon enough." - --- MAP posted-by: Jackl