WASHINGTON, WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao may be approaching the end of a years-long effort to recover tens of millions of U.S. dollars in criminal assets frozen in the United States, money that the government has long said should ultimately be transferred to the island's Crime Prevention Fund.
Information circulating in Curaçao indicates that Justice Minister Shalten Hato is in the United States in connection with the final documentation needed for the release of approximately US$30 million. Curaçao Chronicle has not yet been able to independently confirm from either the U.S. Department of Justice or the Curaçao government that the transfer has formally been authorized or that the funds have already been released.
Official documents and earlier reports do, however, confirm the lengthy process behind the funds.
The case dates back more than a decade and is linked to criminal proceedings involving Curaçao lottery businessman Robertico "Robbie" dos Santos. Millions of dollars held in U.S. financial accounts became the subject of seizure and forfeiture proceedings connected to the Curaçao criminal case.
A 2016 Curaçao court ruling identified substantial assets held at UBS Financial Services in the United States, including accounts worth US$18.9 million and US$9.2 million, in addition to other U.S.-dollar accounts and assets involved in the case.
Hato traveled to the United States in late 2022 to discuss the frozen assets with U.S. authorities. At the time, the minister said negotiations involved approximately US$30 million that Curaçao considered destined for its Crime Prevention Fund. The government said the money could be used for projects including rehabilitation programs at the Sentro di Detenshon i Korekshon Kòrsou (SDKK) and equipment for the Curaçao Police Force (KPC).
Following those talks, Curaçao's Ministry of Justice announced in January 2023 that an agreement had been reached with the U.S. Department of Justice and that the American authorities had committed themselves to transferring the money to Curaçao during 2023. That transfer, however, did not take place according to the original timetable.
The issue remained unresolved well into 2025. In its advice on Curaçao's 2026 budget, the Advisory Council specifically questioned what had happened to approximately US$50 million seized in the United States in connection with gaming-related funds transferred abroad. The Council noted that the money was intended for the Crime Prevention Fund and should ultimately be used for public safety and crime-fighting measures.
The government's response to the budget review provided another important development. It stated that a U.S. federal judge issued a final forfeiture order in 2023 to give effect to the criminal forfeiture judgment handed down by the Curaçao court in 2016. According to the government, Curaçao's justice authorities subsequently maintained frequent contact with their American counterparts about releasing the funds, through emails, in-person discussions and video meetings.
This means that the dispute is no longer simply about whether Curaçao has pursued the money. There is a documented Curaçao forfeiture judgment, a subsequent U.S. federal forfeiture decision and years of negotiations between Curaçao and American authorities over returning the assets.
There is, however, an important discrepancy in the amounts mentioned over the years. Hato previously spoke of approximately US$30 million, while later Curaçao budget documents referred to approximately US$50 million seized by the United States. The publicly available documents do not clearly reconcile those figures or establish how much would ultimately be transferred to Curaçao.
If the latest information about Hato's visit and the signing of transfer documents is officially confirmed, it would represent a major breakthrough in a case that has remained unresolved for well over a decade.
It could also provide a substantial injection into Curaçao's Crime Prevention Fund, potentially making millions available for police equipment, prison rehabilitation programs and other investments in the justice system.
For now, however, confirmation is still needed from the Curaçao Ministry of Justice or U.S. authorities on three crucial points: whether the United States has formally approved the release, the exact amount Curaçao will receive, and when the money will actually be transferred.