Asset Search Blog : Asset Search & Hidden Assets : Lawyer & Attorney Fred Abrams : Tax Fraud, Asset Investigations

This "Asset Search News Roundup" focuses on "politically exposed persons", some of whom would launder corruption monies.

1. "Stolen Asset Recovery: Politically Exposed Persons, A Policy Paper On Strengthening Preventative Measures" was published in 2009 and it is available at the Stolen Asset Recovery Initiative's website.  The 2009 policy paper stated at page 17: "[I]f, as the World bank suggests, $1 trillion of corruption money is moving around the world each year, where is it? ....the money must be moving undetected through the banks and intermediaries and the current systems are failing to detect it". 
   
    
2. The Senate's permanent subcommittee on investigations held a hearing on February 4, 2010 about politically exposed persons from abroad hiding corruption monies in the United States.  At this hearing, the investigations subcommittee released its 330-page report "Keeping Foreign Corruption Out Of The United States: Four Case Studies".  A news release mentioning the hearing explained: "...that politically powerful foreign officials, and those close to them, have found ways to use the U.S. financial system to protect and enhance their ill-gotten gains".  

Copyright 2010 Fred L. Abrams

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At "Target Of Corruption Probe Sues Hip-Hoppers For Supposed Fraud", I first mentioned the nexus between former Turks & Caicos premier Michael Misick and Hip Hop Weekly Magazine.  The Forbes article "The Premier And The Hip-Hop Magazine" discussed the same thing and also quoted me. 

This article specifically examined the Former Premier's alleged investment in Hip Hop Weekly Magazine through My Way Productions 2.  The Forbes article additionally described Sir Robin Auld's public corruption investigation of the Former Premier and asked at page 1:

 "How did My Way Productions 2 get its funding? According to the investigation carried out by Sir Robin Auld, Misick supplied a document that showed $300,000 was transferred to My Way Productions 2 in 2007 from a company called Windsor Investment Group. Misick claimed the money was a dividend from that company, which he and his brother partially owned."

The supposed transfer of $300,000 dollars into My Way Productions 2 had been expressly mentioned at page 146 ¶¶4.75 & 4.76 of Sir Robin's "Final Report to the Governor of the Turks and Caicos Islands".*  The $300,000 dollars was also apparently discussed at pages 51, 53, & 54 of a transcript from the Former Premier 's January 14, 2009 public corruption hearing.  Besides all of the foregoing, assertions made by New Jersey lawyer David J. Finkler might too shed light on the Former Premier's connection to Hip Hop Weekly Magazine.

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"A Strategy Of Seizing Sinaloa Drug Cartel Assets" is about the U.S. Department of Justice's use of asset forfeiture against Mexico's drug cartels.  U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") pursues this forfeiture policy alongside the Department of Justice.  As explained by my February 11, 2009 "Asset Search News Roundup", the OFAC can list drug traffickers as "Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers". 

If a drug trafficker is placed on the "Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers" list, than his / her assets subject to U.S. jurisdiction are frozen.  A February 25, 2010 press release reveals that the OFAC added seven supposed leaders of the La Familia Michoacana (La Familia) drug cartel, to the Specially Designated Narcotics Traffickers list.  These seven suspected La Familia leaders are depicted in an OFAC link chart:

Chart Courtesy of U.S. Treasury's OFAC

Copyright 2010 Fred L. Abrams

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"Smuggling Cash Across Iraq's Borders" mentioned Donnie the former DEA agent who had trained Iraqi border personnel to interdict bulk-cash smugglers.  To help detect these smugglers, governmental authorities also use declaration forms to track the cross-border movement of cash and monetary instruments. 

As mentioned by my April 13, 2009 "Asset Search News Roundup", one such declaration form is the "FinCen 105".  It generally requires disclosure to the Bureau of Customs and Border Protection, when individuals physically transport, mail or ship more than $10,000 in cash or monetary instruments into the U.S.:

To avoid triggering the mandatory filing of a FinCen 105, Virginia medical doctor Andrew Silva had illegally structured cash by smuggling it in packages containing less than $10,000.  During an abusive offshore tax avoidance scheme, Dr. Silva mailed these packages of cash from Switzerland into the U.S., as outlined by his "statement of facts" filed in U.S.A. v. Andrew B. Silva.

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Today's "Asset Search News Roundup" is about the New York case against the ex-president of Guatemala, Alfonso Portillo and it also mentions the sentencing of New York former top cop Bernard Kerik:

• The one-count indictment unsealed on January 26, 2010 in the case against ex-president Portillo is available here.  Mr. Portillo's indictment alleges that he embezzled monies in a public corruption scheme during his Guatemalan presidency.  According to his indictment, Mr. Portillo supposedly laundered illicit proceeds through multiple jurisdictions including: New York, Miami, Paris, Luxembourg and Switzerland.  He is specifically accused of violating 18 U.S.C. §1956 and the federal government is seeking asset forfeiture pursuant to 18 U.S.C. §982.
  
   
• As reported by Bloomberg.com on February 18, 2010, former NYPD Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik was sentenced to four years of prison for tax fraud and some of the other crimes described at "White-Collar Crime & A Former Top Cop".  The letter Mr. Kerik sent to the Court just prior to his sentencing is available here: 

 Copyright 2010 Fred L. Abrams

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The plaintiffs' complaint in Grosz v. The Museum of Modern Art had alleged that The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA") was the wrongful transferee of three Holocaust-era paintings.  The Court's Order dismissed this contested provenance complaint last month on the ground that the complaint was barred by the statute of limitations. 

Since the Grosz complaint was dismissed, attorney Raymond Dowd filed a Notice of Appeal on behalf of the plaintiffs.  Mr. Dowd will also be lecturing on March 24, 2010 at Sotheby's Institute of Art where he will present "Egon Schiele's Dead City: Current Issues in Nazi Art Looting and Recovery".

Perhaps more interesting than the dismissal of the Grosz complaint, are the historical letters discussed by Grosz.  The following letters for example, were respectively mentioned during Grosz, at ¶¶39 & 48 of plaintiffs' June 23, 2009 Declaration of Jonathan G. Petropoulos:  

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This "Asset Search News Roundup" contains a copy of the indictment filed against Minneapolis auto magnate Dennis Hecker.  It also discusses the securities fraud complaints pending in New York against Bank of America.
 

1. A press release from the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Mr. Hecker was indicted last Wednesday for allegedly hiding his assets.  "Has Auto Magnate Dennis Hecker Hidden His Assets?"  had described a few of Mr. Hecker's supposed fraudulent financial transfers and explained that Mr. Hecker had reportedly been under criminal investigation.
   
   Mr. Hecker's seven-count indictment accused him of concealing assets through money laundering in violation of 18 U.S.C. §1957.  The indictment additionally charged Mr. Hecker with allegedly violating 18 U.S.C. §1343 (wire fraud) and 18 U.S.C. §1349 (conspiracy to commit wire fraud).
   
    
2. As an October 19, 2009 Amended Complaint and a January 12, 2010 Complaint demonstrate, the SEC had filed securities fraud complaints in New York against Bank of America.  These complaints were over alleged non-disclosure about Bank of America's merger with Merrill Lynch and / or year-end bonuses paid to Merrill Lynch employees.
   
   The February 12th article "Fork It Over: Rakoff Wants the Scoop on Why Bank of America Fired Its GC " reported that the Court is contemplating a settlement of these SEC complaints.  Said article explained that Bank of America was also just sued in connection with its Merrill Lynch merger, by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.  The New York Attorney General's securities fraud suit can be viewed here. 

Copyright 2010 Fred L. Abrams

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"High Risk Locations & An Asset Search" and "Domestic Shell Companies & An Asset Search" explain that Delaware-based shell companies can especially pose a money laundering risk.  My other articles related to this same subject are:

• Following The Money Trail From Poland To Delaware

• Warsaw Prosecutors Eye Possible Money Laundering At 50 Platowcowa Street
  

• Breach Of Trust By A Former Red Cross Secretary-General?
   
• Financial Fraud Trends For The Year 2010
   

Last month MoneyLaundering.com called me and expressed its interest in some of the foregoing.  It then wrote "Polish Investigations into Delaware Companies Highlight Vulnerabilities to Laundering",* which I am quoted in:

*Polish Investigations into Delaware Companies Highlight Vulnerabilities to Laundering, Copyright 2010 Alert Global Media, reprinted with permission.

(Edited February 14, 2010)

Copyright 2010 Fred L. Abrams

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The Wall Street Journal's February 4, 2010 article "Switzerland Freezes Freed Duvalier Assets", is about alleged illicit assets blocked in Switzerland.  The blocked assets have been maintained in Swiss bank accounts and are believed to originate from Haiti's public coffers.  These public coffers were reportedly looted by former politically exposed person Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier, who fled Haiti in 1986. 

The Wall Street Journal article claims that foreign dictators no longer favor hiding assets at Swiss banks because of "tough" Swiss laws requiring banks to know the source of funds.  The Swiss laws the article seems to refer to are commonly called "customer identification" or "know your customer" rules.  Rules requiring banks to identify their customers have been adopted across the globe and are in effect in the United States, the United Kingdom, etc. 

Swiss banks specifically follow customer identification rules by requiring their customers to execute a "declaration of beneficial ownership" which is also known as a "Form A".  Swiss banks also routinely monitor customer accounts, consistent with international anti-money laundering standards.  A former Yale Law School visiting scholar discusses the use of "Form A's" and shares some of his views on Swiss banking, at "Customer Identification At UBS AG And Some Other Banks". 

 Copyright 2010 Fred L. Abrams

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