Lawyer accused of money laundering

An international lawyer has appeared in court charged with money laundering and defrauding the Commonwealth Secretariat over a five year period. Joshua Brien, 47, allegedly carried out the fraud by creating false invoices while employed as a legal adviser at the headquarters of the Commonwealth in central London. After becoming general counsel at US law firm Cooley, Brien allegedly failed to inform them of the reason he has been dismissed from his previous employer, Westminster Magistrates Court heard. Brien’s wife,…