The latest medical warning comes after an increase in severe acute respiratory symptoms in children, who have been hospitalised in Costa Rica with bronchiolitis.
Meanwhile, vaccinations of under 4-year-olds began on 10 October, as it has been reported that 3.4% of the cases of Covid-19 detected in Panama since March 2020 correspond to children between 6 months and 4 years old, as well as 3,845 to babies under 6 months.
14 OCTOBER 2022
ECONOMIC SANCTIONS AT THE NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL LEVEL AND THEIR IMPACT ON CHARITIES
On 12 October, an article from Withers advises that charities, like any other concern, when they are approached by a potential donor, select a grantee or look to pay funds (whether domestically or internationally), charities should conduct due diligence and be aware of potential restrictions deriving from sanctions laws.
MALTA’S NEW START-UP RESIDENCE PERMIT
On 14 October, Dixcart advised about a new visa will allow non-European nationals to relocate and live in Malta, by establishing an innovative start-up. It allows founders/co-founders to apply for a 3-year residency permit, together with their immediate family, and the company to apply for 4 additional permits for Key Employees.
https://mailchi.mp/dixcart/maltas-new-start-up-residence-permit?e=7aa3a50ea3
MEPs: BREXIT SANCTIONS MECHANISM NEEDED
On 14 October, EU Reporter reported that MEPs have warned that the EU intends to enforce its post-Brexit agreements with the UK and is strengthening the necessary legal tools to do so. This would include a possible sanctions mechanism, under the EU-UK’s Withdrawal Agreement and Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
https://www.eureporter.co/world/uk/brexit/2022/10/14/brexit-sanctions-mechanism-needed/
SOUTH KOREA IMPOSES FIRST UNILATERAL SANCTIONS ON NORTH KOREA SINCE 2017
On 14 October, NHK reported that the move is in response to repeated launching of missiles. The sanctions target 15 individuals and 16 organisations. The individuals include senior officials at the North Korean military’s Second Academy of Nature Science who are believed to be in charge of the country’s nuclear and missile development. The designated organisations include the Ministry of Rocket Industry and its related trading companies.
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20221014_16/
CANADA: MORE SANCTIONS ON IRAN OVER RIGHTS VIOLATIONS
On 13 October, Barron’s and others reported that Canada had announced more sanctions against Iran over human rights violations during the protests sweeping that country. The sanctions target 3 Iranian entities and 17 individuals including Saeed Mortavazi, a prosecutor at the Iranian Revolutionary Court, former foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, senior officials with state-run media, and a former defence minister.
https://www.barrons.com/news/canada-slaps-more-sanctions-on-iran-over-rights-violations-01665677108
https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/canada-imposes-new-iran-sanctions-over-human-rights-0
DOWNWARD TREND IN PIRACY CONTINUES IN THE GULF OF GUINEA
On 14 October, Defence Web reported that piracy appears to be on the decline with reported incidents in the Gulf of Guinea substantially down in the latest quarterly International Maritime Bureau (IMB) report.
https://www.defenceweb.co.za/featured/downward-trend-in-piracy-continues-in-the-gulf-of-guinea/
UK: TREAT OVERSEAS REGISTER REGIME ‘LIKE AML COMPLIANCE WITH BELLS ON’, SOLICITORS TOLD
On 14 October, the Law Society Gazette reported that solicitors have been advised to tread carefully if asked to help register foreign owners of UK property under government measures to crack down on money laundering. The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 introduced a register of overseas entities, which came into force on 1 August, requiring anonymous foreign owners of UK property to reveal their identities. Overseas entities that already own UK property must register by 31 January.
EU AUTHORITIES TARGET LABOUR EXPLOITATION IN THE FIELDS
On 14 October, a news release from Europol advised that, between 14 and 21 September, Europol and the European Labour Authority supported Europe-wide coordinated action days against human trafficking for labour exploitation in the agricultural sector. The operation was led by France and involved a wide range of law enforcement authorities, including police, immigration and border guards, labour inspectorates and tax authorities from 16 countries. More than 6,000 officers from national authorities took part in operational activities on the ground. There were 17 arrests in France, Spain, the UK and Ukraine.
UK: FCA FINES GATEHOUSE BANK £1.5 MILLION FOR POOR AML CHECKS
On 14 October, a release on Mondo Visione advised that the FCA has fined Gatehouse Bank Plc £1,584,100 for significant weakness in its financial crime systems and controls. Between June 2014 and July 2017 Gatehouse failed to conduct sufficient checks on its customers based in countries with a higher risk of money laundering and terrorist financing. Gatehouse also failed to undertake the correct checks when some of the customers were classed as Politically Exposed Persons (PEP).
ILLEGAL, UNREPORTED AND UNREGULATED (IUU) FISHING
On 14 October, a briefing paper from the EU Parliament Research service published an update to a 2017 paper saying that the EU has set up a thorough control system, in particular the IUU Regulation, which remains a landmark piece of fisheries legislation worldwide. Intended to prevent the import of IUU-caught products into the EU, the IUU Regulation is structured around market-related measures, such as a catch certification scheme, which was the first unilateral scheme of this type, and a ‘carding’ system for non-cooperating third countries that may lead to trade sanctions. A broad range of complementary measures reinforces this approach. Action to combat IUU fishing is now a key topic on the EU international ocean governance agenda.
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2017/614598/EPRS_BRI(2017)614598_EN.pdf
LUKASHENKO’S SERBIAN ASSOCIATES EVADE WESTERN SANCTIONS
On 12 October, EurActiv reported that relations between a Serbian oligarch under Western sanctions and the leader of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, and schemes to evade sanctions via EU-member Cyprus are exposed in a new report. It says that the report contains extensive details and documents attesting to the properties owned by the Serbian Karić family, as well as connections to Lukashenko.
PAKISTANI COURT ACQUITS PM AND SON IN MONEY LAUNDERING CASE
On 12 October, Al Jazeera reported that Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif and his son Hamza had been accused of laundering. Sharif and his son Hamza, the former chief minister of Punjab province, were charged during the administration of former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/10/12/pakistani-court-acquits-pm-son-in-money-laundering-case
MEDICAL REHABILITATION CENTRE IN ROMANIA: BUSINESSMAN AND COMPANY INDICTED FOR FRAUD AND MONEY LAUNDERING, DAMAGES OF OVER €3 MILLION IN EU FUNDS
A news release from the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) on 10 October announced that a Romanian businessman and a company he represented were indicted for fraudulently obtaining over €3 million in EU funds for the development of RECUMED, a research-development centre in medical recovery and bio reconstruction.
LAOS: AML/CFT MUTUAL EVALUATION ON-SITE VISIT
On 14 October, FATF-style regional body APG advised that the first APG mutual evaluation onsite visit since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic has taken place with an onsite visit held from 12 September 2022 to 23 September in Vientiane.
http://www.apgml.org/news/details.aspx?pcPage=1&n=4191
US: A NEW STUDY DETAILS COSTS AND DRIVERS OF FINANCIAL CRIME COMPLIANCE
On 13 October, the ABA Banking Journal reported that the cost of financial crime compliance in North America for 2022 is estimated at $56.7 billion, up 13.6% from 2021, according to a new study from Lexis Nexis Risk Solutions that surveyed institutions in the US and Canada.
TAXATION OF THE DIGITALIZED ECONOMY
On 14 October, KPMG published its latest update of this regular publication.
US REMOVES GUATEMALAN NATIONAL WANTED FOR FINANCIAL CRIMES IN HOME COUNTRY
A news release from US Immigration & Customs Enforcement on 14 October advised that Manuel Antonio Baldizon, 52, was convicted in the US of conspiracy to commit money laundering and is wanted by law enforcement authorities in his home country for criminal conspiracy, passive bribery, and laundering of money or other assets.
THIRD COUNTRIES ALIGNED WITH EU COUNCIL DECISIONS WHICH CONSTITUTE PART OF THE EU EIGHTH PACKAGE OF RUSSIA SANCTIONS
On 14 October, the EU Sanctions blog reported that North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway had aligned with one Council Decision; and North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway with 2 others.
LEADER OF FAKE US MILITARY CLOTHING SCHEME GETS PRISON TIME
On 14 October, the Mail Online reported that Ramin Kohanbash, 52, who ran a scheme that sold $20 million worth of substandard counterfeit Chinese-made clothing and gear to the US military – potentially putting active-duty service members in danger – has been sentenced to more than 3 years in prison.
GARDAÍ AND INTERPOL SEARCH PREMISES IN DUBLIN AND CLARE IN MAJOR ONLINE FRAUD INVESTIGATION
On 14 October, The Journal reported that, since mid-August, an effort to target the laundering of proceeds from crimes such as international business email compromise, invoice re-direction fraud and romance fraud resulted in 62 charges of money laundering and 3 organised crime offences. Officers searched 9 premises in Dublin and Clare and arrested 23 people. It is reported that that the organisation involved is the Black AXE, a criminal organisation formed in West Africa in the mid-1970s.
https://www.thejournal.ie/money-laundering-operation-jackal-5893906-Oct2022/
IRELAND: ARMY OF 4,000 IRISH MONEY MULES HELP CRIMINAL ORGANISATION LAUNDER €64 MILLION
On 14 October, the Irish Examiner claimed that an army of 4,000-plus people in Ireland are laundering money for a notorious west African-based criminal organisation, with an estimated €64 million cleaned through the accounts to date. It says that action in Ireland is part of Interpol’s Operation Jackal — spanning 14 countries in a week of action that started on 26 September.
https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-40984004.html
WOMAN, 75, HELD IN GERMANY ACCUSED OF LEADING FAR-RIGHT TERROR PLOT
On 14 October, the Guardian reported that a pensioner believed to be the ringleader of a terrorist group planning to launch attacks on German politicians and power infrastructure has been remanded in custody. The 75-year-old retired teacher from the eastern state of Saxony is suspected of having been what investigators have called the “ideological brains” behind the far-right group.
https://twitter.com/PatrickMcGarve5/status/1580971569924706304?s=20&t=pW9nBjNxVAFbb5hSNUtLsQ
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