'This is just a small percentage of the total money
laundered over the years,' he said.
400 people including politicians and bureaucrats benefited from the
laundered money.
The changes were made to the money laundering and terrorism funding law, which also includes punishing those who legalise, cover up or receive a share from
laundered money.
Most of its proceeds are
laundered in offshore centers but millions of dollars still circulate in Costa Rica.
It impedes bringing cases against the associates of money launderers, while the act does not prevent the spending of
laundered monies by a launderer's family or close friends.
(15) Since the proceeds of these white collar crimes need to be
laundered, it could be argued that money laundering should exceed this estimate if the value of the proceeds of other crimes (such as narcotics smuggling and cash-in-transit robberies) are included.
Otherwise the coverage remains basically the same, with Lilley describing where money that to be
laundered comes from, how money laundering actually works, and why it is a global problem, liberally sprinkling anecdotes of money laundering operations throughout the text.
According to the International Monetary Fund, between $600 billion and $1.5 trillion of illicit money is
laundered annually, equal to 2% to 5% of global economic output.
The oft-cited figure from the United Nations that the illegal drug trade, at the international level, generates $400-$500 billion annually (8 percent of total trade flows) also implies that the amounts
laundered are massive.
The process of depositing the
laundered money in banks is called placement and can be accomplished in several ways.
These include 'assistance' with money laundering, 'tipping off' money launderers about an investigation against them, failing to report money laundering, and 'acquiring'
laundered money.'
The opening of bank accounts, the use of currency transfer establishments, automated teller machines, credit cards and other common financial transactions facilitated the ease in which terrorist monies could be hidden and
laundered.