Skip to content

Menu

HomeAbout Fred AbramsDivorce & Hidden MoneyPrivate InvestigatorsContact
Phone: 1-212-766-7275
Search
Close

Asset Search Blog

Investigating & Recovering Hidden Money & Other Assets

Published By: Fred L. Abrams, Attorney At Law
Home > Asset Forfeiture > Recovering Illicit Assets Via Switzerland’s Mutual Legal Assistance Unit

Recovering Illicit Assets Via Switzerland’s Mutual Legal Assistance Unit

By Fred Abrams on July 22, 2014
Posted in Asset Forfeiture, Asset Search/Fraud Investigation, Financial Institutions, Money Laundering, Public Corruption, Swiss Banks, White-Collar Crime Generally

Mr. Pascal Gossin is the head of Switzerland’s Mutual Legal Assistance Unit, (“the Unit”), which is part of the Federal Office of Justice.  Mr. Gossin was a fellow speaker at the Carmelite Chambers International Fraud & Asset Recovery Conference, which I attended last month.

If the Unit suspects a dictator or other Politically Exposed Persons,(i.e. individuals holding high foreign public office, a.k.a.“PEPs”), hid corruption proceeds in a Swiss bank account, the Unit freezes the illicit assets.  It then seeks to return these assets to the appropriate foreign state.  Examples of PEP cases Mr. Gossin has been in charge of involved Nigeria’s Sani Abacha; the Democratic Republic of Congo’s Joseph Désiré  Mobutu (a.k.a. Mobutu Sese Seko); and Peru’s Vladimiro Montesinos.

The Unit handles extradition requests and negotiates with foreign governments about mutual legal assistance treaties, as well as the sharing of seized assets.  The Unit also sometimes tips foreign governments regarding secret Swiss bank accounts related to money laundering and a variety of crimes.  Mr. Gossin refers to this tipping as “the spontaneous transmission of information”.   This transmission of secret information is one of the matters covered by Mr. Gossin’s slideshow about the Unit, which he presented at the International Fraud & Asset Recovery Conference:

 

Swiss Mutual Assistance & Extradition

 

Slideshow Courtesy of Mr. Pascal Gossin & The Federal Office of Justice.

Copyright 2014 Fred L. Abrams

Tags: asset recovery, Carmelite Chambers, Joseph Désiré Mobutu, offshore banking, Pascal Gossin, Sani Abacha, Swiss bank account, Vladimiro Montesinos
Print:
Email this postTweet this postLike this postShare this post on LinkedIn

About Fred Abrams

Fred Abrams
As a member of the New York bar since 1990, Mr. Abrams has handled a wide variety of legal matters in which assets were hidden, such as RICO, money laundering, identity theft and tax fraud. He additionally handled cases in federal court in which his adversaries were Casio Computer Co. Ltd. of Japan; General Motors Corp.; Detroit Diesel Corp; & Lloyds of London.

Read More




Stay Connected

RSS Twitter LinkedIn

Topics

Archives

Recent Updates

  • Did Alex Jones the Infowars Host Hide Money or Other Assets?
  • Divorce & Hidden Money: Concealed Assets & Concealment Schemes
  • One Way To Learn How To Search For Assets
  • 2 Tips For When You Access Your Divorcing Spouse’s Computer
  • Hiding Community Property At A Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plan

Asset Search & Recovery Resources

  • A Low-Cost Asset Search
  • Assets & Financial Intelligence
  • Forming Shell Companies To Conceal Assets
  • Fraudulent Asset Transfers
  • Illegal Asset Searches
  • Laundered Assets
  • Recovering Assets Hidden Offshore
  • Red Flags For Finding Assets
  • Secreting Assets Without A Border Trace
  • Tax Fraud & ID Theft

Links

  • Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering
  • Basel Committee
  • Belgian Financial Intelligence Processing Unit
  • Caribbean Financial Action Task Force
  • Company Documents.com
  • Financial Action Task Force
  • Financial Crimes Enforcement Network
  • Financial Transactions & Reports Analysis Centre Canada
  • Inter Governmental Action Group Against Money Laundering In West Africa
  • OECD & Tax Transparency
  • SEC Whistleblower Advocate
  • Serious Organised Crime Agency
  • The Egmont Group of Financial Intelligence Units
  • Transparency International
  • U.N. IMoLIN
  • USA Patriot Act Monitor
  • World Bank-AML/CTF

Asset Search Blog

RSS Twitter LinkedIn
Fred L. Abrams, Attorney At Law
31 West 34th Street, Suite 8133
New York, NY 10001
Phone: 1-212-766-7275
Privacy PolicyDisclaimerAsset Recovery LawyersDivorce And Hidden Assets LawyersFinancial Investigator for Divorce In The USA
ATTORNEY ADVERTISING | PRIOR RESULTS DO NOT GUARANTEE A SIMILAR OUTCOME.
Copyright © 2023, Law Office Of Fred L. Abrams. All Rights Reserved.
Law blog design & platform by LexBlog LexBlog Logo