The 2013 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (“INCSR“) published this month by the U.S. Department of State, particularly volume I on the drug trafficking trade, is more favourable of Canada than the last two years, primarily as a result of the enactment in Canada of the Omnibus Crime Bill C-10, know as the Safe Streets and [...]
The US Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN“) has issued its interpretive guidance on the applicability of virtual currencies (the most popular of which is bitcoin) to the Bank Secrecy Act (“BSA“). Pursuant to the Guidance, a person or entity that: (1) exchanges; or (2) administers virtual currency or bitcoin, is a money services business (“MSB“) [...]
According to this article in the Vancouver Sun, the Vancouver airport tops the country with the most seizures of unreported currency by travellers, with over $15 million intercepted in one year. Most of the persons entering or departing the country with undeclared currency originate or are travelling to, China. Under the Proceeds of Crime (Money [...]
In what is seen as a positive move in support of Canada’s anti-terrorism laws and extradition law for terrorism and money laundering charges, the Supreme Court of Canada today refused an appeal by Suresh Sriskandarajah from the Ontario Court of Appeal upholding an order for his extradition to the United States to face charges of [...]
The New York Court of Appeals ruled this week that the use of a New York bank account by a listed entity (an entity identified as a terrorist one) is sufficient to establish jurisdiction for American victims of the listed entity’s terrorist activities to claim compensation. The bank in question is a Beirut bank with [...]
Lawrence Davidson, a once prominent lawyer in Las Vegas, was sentenced today to 8 years in prison for money laundering and mail fraud. Davidson was indicted in 2005 on charges that he negotiated 17 settlements totaling USD$936,300 over 14 months for clients without their permission. His case spun off a corruption case in Las Vegas involving [...]
In a much anticipated move, Kim Rothstein, the so-called “free-spending” wife of Scott Rothstein, the Florida lawyer convicted of money laundering for running a Ponzi scheme through his now-defunct law firm, has been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering. Kim Rothstein’s lawyer, Scott Saidel and her close friend, Stacie Weisman, were also charged with [...]
The U.S. Permanent Senate Subcommittee on Investigations has found that HSBC Holdings PLC allowed drug traffickers, terrorists and rogue states to launder billions of dollars in the U.S. as a result of poor anti-money laundering (“AML”) and counter terrorist financing (“CTF”) controls. The Subcommittee found that HSBC serviced high-risk clients in drug-trafficking countries with weak AML [...]
Former New York Mets all-star outfielder, Lenny Dykstra, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court today in LA to money laundering, bankruptcy fraud and concealment of assets for hiding and selling sports memorabilia that were assets that were supposed to be included in his bankruptcy filing. After filing for bankruptcy, Dykstra is alleged to have sold [...]
New York lawyer Matthew Kluger was sentenced yesterday in federal court in New Jersey to 12 years in prison for insider trading. His sentence is the longest term ever imposed for that crime in the U.S. Kruger stole undisclosed transactional information on approximately 30 deals when he was a corporate lawyer with several U.S. law [...]