SL crime fighting authorities on a roll
At least 10 money laundering convictions are on the cards at the higher courts, after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) nudged Sri Lankan authorities to walk the talk in fighting ‘black’ money in the country, top officials said.
Money laundering is the process of making illegally obtained funds, appear legitimate by disguising their true origins.
Most of these deal with drug trafficking, officials said, noting that during the past year, at least six to seven convictions happened. These materialised after the IMF requested the government to investigate money laundering and corruption offences and to prosecute the offenders bound by effective sanctions.
However, officials lament that there is no centralised database on these offences. “These offences are also happening in regional areas and regional courts enforce the convictions. Now we are working on a regional database of these related data,” a top Finance Ministry official told the Business Times on Wednesday.
Limited resources, capacity gaps, and a lack of coordination among regulatory agencies hamper the country’s anti-money laundering, efforts. He said that in the history of Sri Lankan money laundering investigations, not more than 20 convictions have taken place. A primary reason for this is the lack of resources, officials say.
They say that every offence should usually have a parallel money laundering investigation to deal with the monetary element of the offence. “But that hardly happens in Sri Lanka because we lack resources. Also proving it is exceedingly difficult,” the official said.
The banking regulator’s crime-fighting unit, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is also cottoning on to many money laundering investigations since last year, Central Bank sources said. They have concluded some probes and handed them over to the Central Intelligence Department for further investigations, they added.
The department has also received complaints regarding pyramid-style schemes, which have been referred to the Deposit Insurance and Resolution Department to deal with the particular offences.
The IMF’s loan programme has emphasised the need to address bribery and corruption and Sri Lanka is required to fulfil obligations under certain sections.
The Sri Lankan government has taken steps to combat money laundering and strengthen its anti-money laundering (AML)
framework. In 2006, the
Sri Lankan Parliament passed the Financial Transactions Reporting Act (FTRA), which requires financial institutions to report suspicious transactions to the FIU.
Hitad.lk has you covered with quality used or brand new cars for sale that are budget friendly yet reliable! Now is the time to sell your old ride for something more attractive to today's modern automotive market demands. Browse through our selection of affordable options now on Hitad.lk before deciding on what will work best for you!