Luxury vehicle surveillance tightened to detect money laundering
View(s):Sri Lanka has tightened surveillance and investigation into vehicle imports especially super luxury car imports with the aim of preventing the integration of illicit funds into the legitimate sector, Motor Traffic Department (MTD) sources said.
The procedure of vehicle registration and issuance of vehicle license has been automated linking the MTD, Sri Lanka Customs, and the Financing Intelligence Unit (FIU) of Sri Lanka with the aim of detecting black money transactions through the purchase of luxury cars, a senior official of the MTD revealed.
Money laundering is the process by which proceeds from a criminal activity are disguised to conceal their illicit origin. Money launderers send their illicit funds through legal channels in order to conceal their criminal origin and convert them into legitimate assets.
It will help to document and detect how much of this money passes through the hands of unscrupulous motor dealers, he said.
If a motor dealer assists a criminal in any way which is likely to conceal proceeds of crime or if a motor dealer uses, receives or possesses proceeds of crime, or helps a person to benefit from proceeds of crime he or she will be guilty of an offence, he told the Business Times.
Motor vehicles that are suspected of being stolen or motor vehicles and spare parts that have entered the country illegally, having escaped lawful customs duties are also regarded as proceeds of crime.
Sri Lanka has intensified its fight against money laundering and terrorist. The FIU entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the MTD recently.
The aim is to receive intelligence information related to investigations and prosecutions of money laundering, terrorist financing and other related crimes.
The MOU was signed by A.H.K. Jagath Chandrasiri, MTD Commissioner General and D.M. Rupasinghe, Director, FIU in the presence of Central Bank Governor Dr. Indrajit Coomaraswamy.
Money laundering and terrorist financing are internationally connected financial crimes which could threaten the stability of domestic as well as global economic and financial systems.
The MOU with the MTD would enable the FIU to gather intelligence and information which is vital for prevention, detection and prosecution of such offences.
The government’s Budget 2018 which removed the ad-volerum calculation method of duty on vehicles and brought about a scenario of subsidising the duty on super luxury cars has resulted in the coffers losing around Rs 25-40 million from each of these vehicles, alleged a top official of a leading automobile import company.
It is reported that many of these super luxury vehicles imported hurriedly after the relaxation of tax on them have already been cleared from the port and there are many more on the way, some by air.
The top official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that already over 100 super luxury cars had been cleared from the port causing losses of billions of rupees to the government and over 400 units are in shipments that will arrive in the country in the next few weeks.