Category: Prosecutions

NatWest Fined £264.8 Million Over Anti-Money Laundering ‘Failures’

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
NatWest received a £264.8 million fine after failing to comply with account-monitoring requirements, becoming the first bank to be criminally convicted under the UK’s anti-money laundering regulations. The fine relates to NatWest’s failure to properly monitor its business relationship with jewellery firm Fowler Oldfield. Over a period of less than four years, the Fowler Oldfield deposited around £365 million—mostly in cash—despite having an estimated annual turnover of just £15 million In sentencing remarks published on Monday, Mrs Justice Cockerill accused NatWest of “failing to comply” with its legal obligations, but without “any deliberate flouting of the rules or any criminal…

Former Petrofac Executive Ordered to Pay £140,000 Over Bribery Case

Bribery, Prosecutions
A former Petrofac executive has been ordered to pay £140,000 over bribery offences in the Middle East. The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) secured a confiscation order during a hearing today at the Southwark Crown Court against former head of sales at Petrofac, David Lufkin. In October, Mr Lufkin was handed a two-year sentence, suspended for 18 months, for making bribery payments to win oil and gas contracts for Petrofac in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. He had previously pleaded guilty to 14 counts of bribery and admitted to making corrupt payments between 2011 and 2018. A confiscation…

Balfour Beatty to Pay £49m Fine for Fraud Against U.S. Military

Fraud, Prosecutions
British construction company Balfour Beatty will pay $65m (£49m) in fines after pleading guilty to fraud committed against the US military. The company’s US arm was one of the biggest providers of privatised military housing to the US army, navy and air forces at 55 bases across the states of Georgia, Oklahoma and Texas, but it lied about repairs in order to increase bonus payments, the US Department of Justice said on Thursday. The company, a member of the FTSE 250 index of mid-sized companies, had to meet various maintenance and resident satisfaction targets to qualify for the bonuses. But…

Swiss Court Confiscates Funds Linked to Uzbek Ex-President

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
The Federal Criminal Court has ordered the confiscation of over $293 million (around CHF270 million) belonging to a shell company linked to Gulnara Karimova. The company, called Takilant, of which Karimova (daughter of the former president of Uzbekistan Islam Karimov) was the beneficial owner, was linked to two of the five Swiss bank accounts under criminal investigation. The total amount confiscated from the company was over $350 million. The court came to the conclusion that a large part of this sum had to be confiscated, since several of those involved – including Karimova and her assistant – were found guilty…

Rabobank Faces Punishment Over Customer Anti-Money Laundering Checks

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
AMSTERDAM, Nov 15 (Reuters) – Dutch cooperative Rabobank (RABO.UL) said on Monday it had been ordered by the Dutch central bank to fix its customer due diligence practices and that it is facing a “punitive enforcement procedure.” In a statement, Rabobank said it had received an instruction from De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) on Oct. 12 to remedy deficiencies in its compliance with laws against money laundering. It said it was too early to say whether the procedure would result in a fine. “These deficiencies mainly concern the execution, recording and outsourcing of client due diligence, transaction monitoring and reporting of…

Founders of Crypto ICO Plead Guilty to Tax Evasion After Raising $24m from Investors

Digital Currencies, Prosecutions, Tax Evasion
The owners of a cryptocurrency company have pleaded guilty to tax evasion, announced Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Chad E. Meacham. Bitqyck founders Bruce Bise, 60, and Samuel Mendez, 65, were charged with tax evasion in August. Mr. Bise pleaded guilty on Sept. 9; Mr. Mendez pleaded guilty this morning. According to plea papers, Mr. Bise and Mr. Mendez admitted that Bitqyck raised approximately $24 million from more than 13,000 investors. Instead of fulfilling their promises to these investors, the defendants used Bitqyck funds on personal expenses, including casino trips, cars, luxury home furnishings, art, and…

OCC to Hold Hearing on Charges Against Former Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. Executives

Prosecutions
WASHINGTON—The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today announced a public hearing before an Administrative Law Judge beginning Monday, September 13, 2021, in Sioux Falls, S.D. The OCC will litigate enforcement actions against Claudia Russ Anderson, former Community Bank Group Risk Officer, David Julian, former Chief Auditor, and Paul McLinko, former Executive Audit Director of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., Sioux Falls, S.D. This hearing represents the culmination of the OCC’s longstanding efforts to hold these individuals accountable for material failures in risk management and for consumer harm. The OCC’s notice of charges alleges Ms. Russ Anderson, Mr. Julian,…

Kroll Finds AML Enforcement is Not Slowed by Covid-19

Prosecutions
Kroll, a provider of services and digital products related to valuation, governance, risk and transparency, has published new data showing that the COVID-19 pandemic has not stunted global enforcement action for anti-money laundering (AML) failings.The findings come from the company’s annual Global Enforcement Review 2021 , which shows that, globally, 45 fines for AML failures were issued in 2020, the same as in 2019. Moreover, the first half of 2021 seems to be following suit, with 17 fines issued between January and July this year, just under half of 2020’s year-end total. Despite the consistency in the volume of fines…

U.S. Charges 138 Medical Workers for US$1.4 Billion Fraud

Fraud, Prosecutions
The Department of Justice last week announced criminal charges against 138 doctors, nurses and licenced medical professionals for their alleged involvement in fraud schemes worth around US$1.4 billion. Authorities accused 43 suspects from 31 federal districts of causing $1.1 billion of that loss through fraudulent claims in telemedicine — medical services offered online. The rest involved “sober homes”, COVID-19 related fraud and opioid distribution schemes. Court documents show that some telemedicine executives paid doctors and nurses to order unnecessary medical equipment and pain medications often after interacting with patients only briefly over the phone or not at all. The companies…

Ex-MP Charged With Making Fraudulent Invoices

Fraud, Prosecutions
Rosemary Ainslie, head of Special Crime at the CPS, said: “The Crown Prosecution Service has today authorised police to charge Jared O’Mara, former MP for Sheffield Hallam, with seven counts of fraud by false representation. “The charges relates to an allegation he made fraudulent invoices to the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority in 2019 jointly with Gareth Arnold, who is also charged with six counts of the same offence. “Jared O’Mara is charged jointly with John Woodliff with a Proceeds of Crime Act offence. The CPS made the decision that the three men should be charged after reviewing a file of…

Ex-bank Director and Minister Jailed in Portuguese Money Laundering Case

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
Armando Vara, a former director of Portugal’s state-owned Caixa Geral de Depositos bank and ex-government minister, has been imprisoned for two years for money laundering. He is already behind bars for a separate offence. The public prosecutor told Lisbon criminal court of a complex financial circuit of accounts in Switzerland and offshore companies, with Vara as the true beneficiary, and mentioned around €2m ($2.37m) being transferred to a Swiss account in the name of Vama, an offshore company of which Vara was ultimate beneficiary. When questioned by the criminal investigation judge in 2009, Vara admitted ownership of all the accounts…

HSBC faces questions over disclosure of alleged money laundering to monitors

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
Bank was under supervision by US Department of Justice-appointed team because of previous violations HSBC discovered a suspected money laundering network that received $4.2bn (£3bn) worth of payments, it has emerged, raising questions over whether it disclosed the information to US monitors who at the time were ensuring the bank cleaned up its act. Insiders who spoke to journalists as part of a joint investigation by the Guardian and the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, have suggested that HSBC may not have appropriately shared the information with the monitoring team installed by US regulators in 2012 after HSBC allowed drug cartels…

Deutsche Bank Enabled Massive US Ponzi Scheme

Fraud, Prosecutions
Deutsche Bank AG is accused of turning a blind eye to a years-long Ponzi scheme that involved fraudulent investments in Florida, expanding the growing list of legal and compliance headaches for Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing. Liquidators of two now-bankrupt Cayman Islands investment funds sued the bank in New York and Florida, claiming it “enabled theft on a massive scale” that led to hundreds of millions of dollars in losses, court records show. Deutsche Bank maintained accounts for entities involved in the scheme despite repeated red flags and SEC sanctions against them, and it failed to enforce its own rules…

Nigerian influencer pleads guilty to money laundering

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
Nigerian influencer Ramon Abbas – also known as Hushpuppi – has pleaded guilty to money laundering in a US court. Hushpuppi, 37, is known for posting photos of his lavish lifestyle on Instagram, where he has 2.5m followers. Court documents filed in California said Hushpuppi’s crimes cost victims almost $24m (£17m) in total. In one scheme, Hushpuppi attempted to steal more than $1.1m from someone who wanted to fund a new children’s school in Qatar, the documents said. Court records unsealed this week show he pleaded guilty to this charge on 20 April. The documents state that between 18 January…

Money Laundering Case Against Lionel Messi Dismissed

Fraud, Money Laundering, Prosecutions
Fresh allegations accusing top footballer Lionel Messi of fraud, embezzlement and money laundering have been dismissed by a Spanish court. The national court ruled that after two years of investigation “no criminal act on the part of the people targeted by the complaint could be proven,” Agence France-Presse news agency reported. Federico Rettori, an Argentine national living in Spain, claimed he formerly worked for Messi’s charity and alleged funds received by the foundation which should have been directed to social causes went instead “towards various private activities or bank accounts that differed from those that were declared by the foundation”.…

Tara Hanlon jailed for over £5m money laundering offences

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
A woman has been jailed for 34 months after being found at Heathrow Airport with five suitcases stuffed with nearly £2m in cash. Tara Hanlon, 30, of Pelham Court, Leeds, pleaded guilty at Isleworth Crown Court in June to money laundering offences worth more than £5m. She was arrested as she tried to board a flight to Dubai on 3 October 2020 with more than £1.9m in cash. Hanlon previously claimed to have “the perfect life” due to her job. Border officials said the find was the largest individual cash seizure at the UK border in 2020. Hanlon previously admitted…

Vatican Puts Cardinal in Financial Crime Trial

Corruption, Prosecutions
The Vatican City has taken an unprecedented step to bring a sitting Cardinal to trial to face the charges of financial corruption associated with investing in London’s luxury real estate using Catholic charity. The indictment of Giovanni Angelo Bechiu, who oversaw the agency responsible for the selection of Catholic saints until last year, shows a dramatic acceleration of Pope Francis. Willingness to reform the finances of the Holy Throne after decades of controversy. The Vatican City said a trial would begin this month to mark the Cardinal’s face with financial crime charges for the first time in modern Catholic history.…

Anti-money laundering expert convicted of money laundering

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
The former chairman of a UK group that represents the payment services industry has been convicted of laundering the proceeds of an investment fraud worth £850,000 and involving more than 60 victims. Dominic Thorncroft, 56, was found guilty at Southwark Crown Court of one count of money laundering, one count of breaching money laundering regulations and four counts of retaining a wrongful credit. Thorncroft was the former chair of the Association of UK Payment Institutions who worked with lawmakers and financial regulators providing anti-money laundering advice and training. An investigation by the Metropolitan Police, which began in 2016, found evidence…

Wood Group settles Amec bribery case in $177 million agreement

Bribery, Prosecutions
John Wood Group Plc said it agreed to pay $177 million to settle a UK-led bribery and corruption probe into a British engineering firm it acquired in 2017. The settlement is part of a so-called deferred prosecution agreement with the Serious Fraud Office and the U.S. Department of Justice concerning Amec Foster Wheeler Plc, Wood Group said in a statement Friday. The UK agreement is still subject to court approval. As part of the deal, the company can avoid prosecution for three years if it cooperates in the continuing bribery probe. Wood Group’s payment is one of the largest ever…

‘High level’ crime gang member admits money laundering

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
A high-level member of an “transnational crime organisation” will be sentenced next month after he was caught with more than €350,000 in criminal proceeds. Jason Reed (40) was also found to have five Rolex watches, an encrypted Aquarius phone and to have purchased a mobile home for cash, despite having no source of income. Reed, of Maelduin, Dunshaughlin, Co Meath, pleaded guilty to money laundering after €32,330 and £390 (€441) was found at his home on May 11th, 2020. Reed also pleaded guilty to money laundering and possessing the proceeds of crime at a car park on Donore Road, Drogheda,…

Tara Hanlon admits £5m money laundering offences

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
A woman has pleaded guilty to money laundering offences worth over £5m after being found at Heathrow Airport with suitcases stuffed with cash. Tara Hanlon, 30, of Pelham Court, Leeds, was arrested as she tried to board a flight to Dubai on 3 October 2020 with more than £1.9m in cash. Appearing at Isleworth Crown Court by video-link, Hanlon admitted four of the five offences she was charged with. She was warned to prepare for a jail term when she is sentenced on 26 July. Border officials said the find in October was the largest individual cash seizure at the…

EU takes Luxembourg to court over AML non-compliance

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
European Commission started infringement procedure against Luxembourg in 2016 over late adoption of EU rules The European Commission on Wednesday took Luxembourg to court, asking the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to impose a daily penalty on the country for failing to put new EU rules to stop money laundering into law. Without the rules on the freezing and confiscation of proceeds of crime, EU and national law enforcement authorities are unable to stop the proceeds from crime from flowing into the legitimate economy, the Commission said. It is also harder for the EU to recover profits from organised crime.…

Two Individuals Indicted for Money Laundering Related to Odebrecht Bribery and Fraud Scheme

Bribery, Fraud, Prosecutions
Bank Executives Charged with Conspiring to Launder Hundreds of Millions of Dollars Through U.S. Financial System Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, an indictment was unsealed charging Peter Weinzierl and Alexander Waldstein, both citizens of Austria, for their roles in a scheme to launder hundreds of millions of dollars through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Odebrecht S.A. (Odebrecht), a Brazil-based global construction conglomerate, in order to pay bribes around the world and defraud the Brazilian government. Weinzierl was arrested earlier today in the United Kingdom pursuant to a provisional arrest request from the United States. Waldstein remains…

Moscow Court Sentences Banker in ‘Russian Laundromat’ Case

Money Laundering, Prosecutions
A court in Russia sentenced banker Oleg Kuzmin on Monday to nine years in prison and ordered him to pay a one-million-ruble (US$13,574) fine for his part in a major money-laundering operation known as the “Russian Laundromat” or the “Moldovan Scheme,” Kommersant reported. The operation that lasted from 2010 until 2014 may have been the largest of this kind in Eastern Europe, with more than US$20 billion of illicit money transferred from Russia to Moldova and Latvia through a complex series of intermediaries, a 2014 OCCRP investigation revealed. Implicated in it were not just members of organized crime groups, but…

Fourth oil executive sentenced for paying bribes to win a multi-million pound contract in post-occupation Iraq

Bribery, Prosecutions
Paul Bond has today been sentenced to three and half years’ imprisonment for conspiring with others to bribe Iraqi public officials to secure lucrative oil contracts in post-occupation Iraq. Earlier this week, Bond, a former senior sales manager at SBM Offshore (SBM), was found guilty on two counts of conspiracy to give corrupt payments following a retrial of his case at Southwark Crown Court. This was the fourth conviction the SFO secured in its wide-scale Unaoil bribery investigation, which uncovered the payment of over $17m worth of bribes to secure $1.7bn worth of contracts for Unaoil and its clients. In…