Here, the Gorgas Memorial Institute has said that the Covid-19 variants that are generating the sixth wave of covid 19 are 70% BA.5 and B.2.1, the latter being the one that has been detected in recent days. However, the health ministry says that despite having high transmissibility, the health system has not yet suffered serious effects – with a reminder that the use of masks is still mandatory on public transport, health facilities, and food handlers. the ministry also insisted on parents protecting their children by vaccination against the respiratory syncytial virus that is filling children’s wards, saying that “The last thing you want is to have a respiratory virus coinfection with Covid-19″.
19 NOVEMBER 2022
IRAN’S EXPORT OF DRONES TO RUSSIA WILL LEAD TO MORE PROLIFERATION AND THREATEN US PARTNERS
On 18 November, an article from the Atlantic Council made this prediction, pointing out that Iran has also exported drones to militias, such as that of ISIS. It argues that Iran’s drone exports to Russia have led to concerns in the West and, to some extent, drones have superseded Iran’s advancing nuclear program as a concern for Western partners.
RINGLEADERS IN MASSIVE COVID FRAUD EXTRADITED FROM MONTENEGRO TO THE US
On 19 November, the Mail Online reported that a Los Angeles couple who fled to Europe after being convicted of running a fraud ring that stole $18 million in COVID-19 aid money have been returned to the US. Richard Ayvazyan and his wife, Marietta Terabelian, were extradited from Montenegro, where they were living in a luxury seaside villa before their arrest in February.
THERANOS FOUNDER ELIZABETH HOLMES JAILED 11 YEARS FOR FRAUD
On 19 November, City AM and others reported that Elizabeth Holmes, the founder of blood-testing start-up Theranos, has been sentenced to more than 11 years in prison for defrauding investors.
https://www.cityam.com/theranos-founder-elizabeth-holmes-jailed-11-years-for-fraud/
FinCEN ISSUES BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP REPORTING RULE EFFECTIVE FROM 1 JANUARY
An article from Orrick on 18 November advised that FinCEN had published a Final Rule, effective 1 January, to implement beneficial ownership reporting requirements included in the Corporate Transparency Act for certain legal entities. The Rule requires that many corporations, LLC, partnerships, and other companies created in or, in the case of non-US entities, registered in the US, report information to FinCEN disclosing the individuals with key ownership stakes in and maintaining substantial control over such entities.
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/fincen-issues-beneficial-ownership-2683806/
JERSEY: DEFERRED PROSECUTION AGREEMENTS
On 18 November, Ogier published an article about the draft Criminal Justice (Deferred Prosecution Agreements) (Jersey) Law, which would bring Jersey in line with jurisdictions such as the UK and US, which have mature DPA regimes. The article sets out to answer the questions: what is the DPA Law, how is it relevant to businesses operating in Jersey and what should organisations bear in mind before entering a Deferred Prosecution Agreement? It says that the Law is due to be debated in the States in mid-December, with a view to it receiving approval by the end of 2022/early 2023, and that it is likely that the Attorney General will publish guidance on the DPA regime around the same time.
https://www.ogier.com/publications/deferred-prosecution-agreements-a-high-stakes-bargain?
IMO TRICKED INTO ASSIGNING NUMBERS FOR FAKE SHIPOWNERS SHIPPING IRAN AND VENEZUELAN OIL
On 18 November, Lloyds List reported that scant technical oversight of the Cameroon and Tanzania flags has enabled a small group of shipowners to dupe the UN agency to unwittingly issue the unique, 7-digit number that forms an IMO number. Georgia is said to have asked the IMO to cancel the unique company identifiers assigned against 10 tankers linked to fake shipowners and managers that falsely claimed to have incorporated companies there.
US: GAO ISSUES POTENTIAL CHINESE NATIONALS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER RECOMMENDATIONS
On 17 November, Homeland Preparedness News reported that the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with recommendations to address Chinese nationals potentially transferring technology to foreign entities. It is said that a third of foreign graduate students studying science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) at domestic universities are Chinese nationals, with some possessing access to sensitive research.
https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-23-106114
US: BIS FAQ RE CHINA’S ADVANCED COMPUTING AND SEMICONDUCTOR SECTORS
On 18 November, Baker McKenzie posted that the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) had issued a first round of FAQ regarding the advanced computing and semiconductor manufacturing Interim Final Rule, published on 13 October. The FAQ address certain questions, such as the geographic scope of the Rule; the definition of “facility” under the Rule; the deemed export and reexport implications of the Rule; the definition and controlled activities of US persons; licensing and the licence review policy for the Rule; and the Rule’s implications for certain items with encryption functionality classified under new Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCN).
SOUTH KOREA: OPPOSITION LEADER’S ‘RIGHT-HAND MAN’ ARRESTED OVER DEVELOPMENT CORRUPTION SCANDAL
On 19 November, the Yonhap News Agency reported that one of the main opposition party leader’s closest confidants had been arrested on charges connected to a high-profile real estate development scandal.
https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20221118005351315?section=national/national
STATEMENT ISSUED BY OWNERS OF THE TANKER (AND ITS CREW) DETAINED IN NIGERIA
On 19 November, a release on Hellenic Shipping News from the owners of the vessel Heroic Idun set out their side of the story. All 26 crew and the vessel were illegally removed from Equatorial Guinea on 10 November by the Nigerian Navy and now face charges under the Piracy Suppression Act and in respect of the unauthorised loading of oil which if guilty would mean long prison sentences in Nigeria. The crew and owners deny any wrongdoing.
ANTI-CORRUPTION CHIEF AT CHINESE SPY AGENCY ADMITS TAKING $33 MILLION IN BRIBES
On 17 November, the South China Morning Post reported that a former anti-corruption chief at China’s national spy agency has pleaded guilty to bribery.
MONEYVAL LAUNCHES AML/CFT EVALUATION PROCESS IN JERSEY
On 3 November, the Council of Europe announced the launch of the 5th round MER for Jersey with a high-level exchange in Jersey, followed by a training for the authorities and the private sector. It was aimed at familiarising all national stakeholders involved in the evaluation with the underlying standards and methodology of FATF and the evaluation approach of MONEYVAL.
THE PROBLEM WITH MONEY LAUNDERING AND INTERNATIONAL STUDENT FEES
On 5 November, a post from Transfer Mate says that schemes using universities to launder ill-gotten gains has become ever more common as rules tighten up elsewhere. It considers common schemes that affect universities.
https://www.transfermate.com/blog/the-problem-with-money-laundering-and-international-student-fees/
BRAZIL FEDERAL POLICE RAID FGV THINK TANK AMID FRAUD, GRAFT PROBE
On 17 November, Yahoo carried a Reuters report that Brazil’s Federal Police had executed search warrants in the Rio de Janeiro headquarters of the Getulio Vargas Foundation (FGV) as part of a probe into alleged fraud, graft and money laundering in the globally respected think tank.
https://www.yahoo.com/now/brazil-federal-police-raid-fgv-151354492.html
INITIAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE FTX DEBACLE
On 19 November, a post on the Compliance & Enforcement blog from the Program on Corporate Compliance & Enforcement at the New York University School of Law says that, while there are sure to be many important lessons from this situation as the facts and their effects become clear, some initial observations bear mentioning.
https://wp.nyu.edu/compliance_enforcement/2022/11/19/initial-observations-on-the-ftx-debacle/
NEW YORK HAS $750 MILLION WORTH OF CANNABIS STOCKPILED THAT GROWERS CAN’T SELL
On 19 November, the Guardian reported that almost 300,000 lb of the drug, worth as much as $750 million, from last year’s production at 200 state-licensed farms are stockpiled, without a place to be sold and in danger of deteriorating. Distribution issues are to blame. Although the New York City has vape shops selling marijuana and CBD products on almost every street, and there are mobile weed vans on Times Square, New York has yet to approve retail dispensaries.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/nov/19/new-york-cannabis-farms-dispensaries-retail
INTERPOL HAS ISSUED A WARRANT FOR THE ARREST OF ANGOLAN BILLIONAIRE ISABEL DOS SANTOS
On 19 November, ICIJ reported that Dos Santos, the daughter of Angola’s former authoritarian President José Eduardo dos Santos, was the subject of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists’ 2020 “Luanda Leaks” investigation.
https://twitter.com/MagnusCanis2/status/1594068945639596032?s=20&t=AgbyUHhKLcTua79Wg5OOfA
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/KoIvM842y
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