NCJ Number
164715
Journal
Transnational Organized Crime Volume: 1 Issue: 4 Dated: (Winter 1995) Pages: 153-164
Date Published
1995
Length
12 pages
Annotation
This transcript discusses the threat organized criminal groups pose to the international banking system, particularly international drug traffickers, who launder their illegal drug money through a variety of financial systems, including the legitimate banking industry.
Abstract
Profits from the sale of illegal drugs are recycled through laundered investments, which occur across many borders and often involve international financial institutions. With current sophisticated banking techniques, including the electronic transfer of money, once the money enters the banking system, it can be transferred among dozens of banks within a 24-hour period, making the "paper trail" either impossible or extremely time- consuming to follow. Globalization of the drug trade has required an expansion and sophistication of the laundering of illegal drug profits. This paper addresses the magnitude of the problems law enforcement officers face with international drug money laundering and the progress the United States has made with its international partners in restricting the flow of profits back to the illegal drug trafficking enterprises. The discussion focuses on those countries and areas of the world where law enforcement is identifying the majority of drug money laundering activities. The countries or regions profiled are Colombia, Mexico, Southeast Asia, Singapore, Thailand, Hong Kong, Nigeria, the Middle East, and Russia. Some effective law enforcement operations designed to counter drug money laundering are described.