Leader of $140mn ‘Faith-Based’ Ponzi Scheme Charged with Wire Fraud
The founder of a Newnan, Georgia-based lender that marketed faith-based investments to conservative audiences was charged with felony wire fraud on Thursday, escalating a civil fraud case into a criminal prosecution nearly a year after regulators shuttered what they described as a $140 million Ponzi scheme.
FINTRAC Warns of Rise in Extortion Schemes Targeting Indian Students
Canada’s financial intelligence agency has issued a bulletin warning banks and other institutions to be on alert for money laundering linked to an escalating extortion campaign targeting South Asian diaspora communities, particularly in British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, and Ontario.
EU to Adopt New Russia Sanctions Package after Hungary Lifts Veto
European Union member states have agreed a new sanctions package against Russia after Hungary lifted its veto, clearing the way for measures targeting Russian oil transport, banks, crypto platforms, and trade in restricted goods.
House Republicans Vote to Roll Back U.S. Beneficial Owner Reporting
A Republican-led U.S. House committee voted on Tuesday to advance legislation that would exempt American limited liability companies and other businesses from reporting on their beneficial owners under the Corporate Transparency Act.
Moldovan Oligarch Heads to Prison for Role in ‘Theft of the Century’
A Moldovan court on Wednesday sentenced oligarch and former political leader Vladimir Plahotniuc to 19 years in prison for his role in a massive bank fraud scheme that siphoned funds from three lenders in 2014.
Suspicious Gamblers Laundered Up to $144mn in Sydney Mega Club
Mounties, one of Australia’s largest club groups, allowed 13 customers to launder as much as A$226 million ($144 million) through poker machines over five years.
DOJ Hits Southern Poverty Law Center with Financial-Crime Charges
The U.S. Justice Department indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) on charges that the civil-rights organization fraudulently paid informants inside extremist groups and concealed those payments with bank accounts opened for nonexistent companies.
Republicans Threaten FinCEN’s Budget over Corporate Transparency Rule
U.S. House Republicans are threatening to block all funding for the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) until the agency finalizes a rule requiring companies to report beneficial ownership information.
Brazil’s PCC Has Grown from a Prison Gang to a Cocaine Superpower
Brazil’s First Capital Command, or PCC, has expanded from a prison gang founded in Sao Paulo state in 1993 into what authorities describe as the largest criminal group in the Americas, with some 40,000 members and affiliates operating in nearly 30 countries.
U.S. Blacklists Network Allegedly Linked to Iran’s Arms Procurement
The U.S. Treasury on Tuesday imposed sanctions on 14 individuals, entities, and aircraft in Iran, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates that it said were involved in arming Iran with missiles and drones.