Keynote Address of General Barry R. McCaffrey, Director, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, American Bankers Association/American Bar Association Money Laundering Enforcement Seminar, Washington, D.C., November 5, 1997

• NCJ Number: 169763
• Author(s): B R McCaffrey
• Date Published: 1997
• Length: 9 pages
• Corporate Author: US Executive Office of the President
• Sale Source: US Executive Office of the President; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Type: Presentation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: DCC

Annotation

The director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy discusses drug trafficking, money laundering, and the efforts of an alliance between the government and financial institutions to address the problem.

Abstract

Illicit drug use imposes tremendous costs on society in terms of illness, death, crime, corrections costs, workplace costs, and impacts on the children of pregnant drug abusers. In addition, money laundering imposes the cost of corruption on markets and political systems. The 1997 National Drug Control Strategy provides a plan for further decreasing illegal drug use. Efforts to halt money laundering have a significant role in accomplishing two of the strategy's five basic goals. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) is actively assisting both the private sector and government. Efforts to address money laundering include international cooperation, an executive order under the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, the Financial Action Task Force, the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) program in the United States, the El Dorado Task force of the New York HIDTA, and FinCEN's Gateway database. The banking community has also taken many steps to address money laundering. Working together, the financial community and the government can have a significant impact on international criminal organizations.