After helping to import illegal Chinese cigarettes and launder over $7 million (US$4.71 million) in cash, a Sydney woman will soon learn her likely jail term. Caixia Li, 49, faced a sentencing hearing in Parramatta District Court on Tuesday with her defence team arguing she played a role in an “unsophisticated” scheme in which she…

A new report put out by two election watchdog groups—the Gibson Group of Maryland, and Election Watch—exposes what appears to be a large-scale money laundering scheme in American elections. The report claims that the groups have uncovered over $200 million worth of money that’s been laundered into political donations, wherein thousands of alleged smurfs make…

News Analysis Canada’s inability to impose legal consequences on money launderers frustrates experts who say the authorities can and must do more to fix the shortfalls in federal financial crime law. In early 2021, a lengthy investigation by authorities in B.C. recommended eight charges against Paul King Jin of Richmond, B.C., over money-laundering offences. The…

SAN DIEGO—A former Wells Fargo personal banker, who pleaded guilty to federal charges for his role in an international money laundering scheme, was sentenced Feb. 27 to nearly three years in federal prison. Leopoldo Lora Aguilera, 58, of Chula Vista, admitted to opening bank accounts under false names and wiring millions of dollars to Mexico,…

Police have smashed an organised Chinese-Australian crime syndicate and seized a record $150 million (US$107 million) of assets, including mansions, property, cash, cryptocurrency, designer handbags, and other luxury items. The Australian Federal Police (AFP) alleged the group, a global operation headquartered in Sydney, enabled multiple transnational organised crime groups to launder funds derived from criminal…

News Analysis Fentanyl overdose has become the leading cause of death for young Americans since 2019. U.S. authorities say that China remains the primary source of the precursor chemicals, which are then processed and manufactured into synthetic opioids by Mexican drug cartels to bring into the United States. In response to the rising threat of…

News Analysis Multiple virtual currency money laundering cases have been occurring in China recently, involving vast amounts of money. Some industry insiders say this has been the mainstream way of capital flight from China for several years. The public security bureau in Tongliao City, Inner Mongolia, has recently busted a money laundering ring that used…

Congressional investigators are being denied access to 148 Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) filed with the Department of the Treasury by banks concerning financial dealings of President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, and brother, Jim, according to incoming House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). “Most Americans have never heard the term ‘Suspicious Activity Reports.’ These are actual reports that financial institutions…

Commentary The collapse of FTX is not just another crypto scam gone bust due to changed market prices. In its brief life of three years, stretching from 2019 to 2022, it became the 2nd biggest crypto exchange on the planet with billions in venture funding and a million customers. It also had enormous influence over…

Federal prosecutors from Manhattan investigated for months the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX in connection with a 1970 law designed to prevent money laundering, but it is unclear whether the investigation concluded prior to the firm’s recent collapse amid a liquidity crisis, according to Bloomberg Monday, citing anonymous sources. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern…