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OCCRP investigation confiscated $2 m from a diamond company while Ukrainian authorities raided the warehouses over a scandal involving inflated food prices sold to the military

Kut’s warehouses are tied to the scheme and Hlyniana’s companies are under investigation for tax evasion and money laundering. Neither woman has been formally charged but both are under scrutiny in their respective countries…

SEC charges Deutsche Bank subsidiary to pay US$4m for failing to file certain suspicious activity reports on time

Deutsche Bank Securities has been fined US $4 million for failing to file suspicious activity reports on time between April 2019 and March 2024 despite receiving requests linked to law enforcement investigations. The SEC found the company took more than two years in some cases to file SARs undermining their usefulness. The bank has agreed to a censure a cease-and-desist order, and the penalty without admitting…

FATF praises Oman in latest evaluation report for achieving positive results in areas such as financial intelligence, international cooperation, and combating TF

Among many strengths identified in the report is a warning that excessive measures on NPOs may be disrupting legitimate activities. FATF advises Oman to remove the requirement for NPOs to be reporting entities.

EPPO Germany led a large-scale VAT fraud investigation, code-named ´Huracán, resulting in the conviction of 3 individuals for organised VAT fraud, and abetting tax fraud

The Regional Court in Düsseldorf sentenced one defendant to four years in prison while the others received sentences of three years and nine months and three years respectively. The court also ordered the confiscation of €7.4 million in assets and the successful transfer of €1.7 million in seized cash to the state treasury. The defendants have one week to file an appeal…

 

 

 

EU MEPs confirms Bruna Szego as the Chair of the EU AML Authority (AMLA)

Bruna Szego who currently leads the AML supervision and regulation unit at the Bank of Italy received strong support with 569 votes in favour 20 against, and 61 abstentions. Based in Frankfurt the AMLA is tasked with coordinating national financial intelligence units and directly supervising high-risk financial entities operating across multiple EU member states. Her appointment as Chair of the AMLA now awaits approval from a qualified majority…

 

Home Office publishes 2023/24 on the activities of the Appointed Person for England and Wales

Officers must file a written report to the Appointed Person in two scenarios: where assets are seized but not detained for more than 48 hours and where no assets are seized. This report should explain why the officer believed the powers were exercisable or why prior judicial approval was not practicable.

Home Office publishes Unexplained Wealth Orders Annual report from 2023 – 2024

This report shows how many times law enforcement agencies applied for an unexplained wealth order and how many unexplained wealth orders were issued by the High Court…

 

FinCEN issues alert about fraud schemes abusing its name, insignia, and tools, including scams tied to beneficial ownership reporting

The alert offers guidance to avoid these schemes, red flag indicators for financial institutions, and reporting channels for victims, emphasizing vigilance and fraud prevention as FinCEN’s AML/CFT priority…

 

 

Europol, with 6 nations, dismantle underground banking networks linked to drug trafficking, seizing €27m in cryptocurrency and valuables, highlighting innovative ML methods and global cooperation

Building on the findings from two major investigations, Operation GORGON and Operation WHITEWALL, this follow-up operation involved close collaboration between Europol’s experts in serious and organised crime and in financial investigations. It led to the arrest of nine suspects and the seizure of evidence (documents, mobile phones), valuables (gold, luxury goods), EUR 35 000 in cash and EUR 27 million in cryptocurrencies…

 

Eurojust addresses criminal group disrupting public services by stealing power cables has been arrested

A criminal group, mainly Bulgarian nationals orchestrated large-scale power cable thefts in three German states generating about 1 million euros in profits. After German authorities traced the group’s activities to Bulgaria a joint operation with Eurojust and Europol led to the arrest of eight suspects five in Bulgaria and three in Germany. Authorities seized valuable evidence during extensive raids in both countries including phones and documents…

Europol’s analysis reveals that 86% criminal networks exploit legal business structures for ML and illicit activities

Europol’s latest report reveals widespread abuse of legitimate business structures (LBS) across high-risk sectors like financial services, real estate, and tech, with methods including VAT carousel fraud, subsidy fraud, and cyber-enabled ML, leveraging cryptocurrency and global tech infrastructure to obscure illicit operations…

 

FCA charges John Dance, former WealthTek LLP partner, with fraud and ML, alleging he misappropriated £64m of client funds to finance personal ventures

John Dance, former principal partner at WealthTek LLP is accused of abusing his position to transfer over £64 m from client accounts for personal gain between 2014 and 2023. The FCA alleges he laundered funds through personal and business accounts using the money to purchase racehorses, properties, and fund other ventures. Additionally, he faces charges of making false representations about WealthTek’s regulatory permissions…

 

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