Crackdown on money launderers conniving with vehicle trade

Sri Lanka is to crackdown on money launderers engaged in cleaning drug money by passing it through layers of banks and businesses and mainly using it to buy luxury expensive cars, land and property, Presidential Secretariat sources disclosed.

President Maithripala Sirisena has issued a directive to the Police Narcotic Bureau (PNB) to keep an eye on luxury car dealers especially individuals and car sale companies to find out whether they are aiding and abetting drug dealers to clean black money.

The PNB says that some of the errant car dealers are allegedly involved in the integration of funds into the legitimate sector helping drug dealers who were among their clients to purchase luxury cars.

A senior automobile industry source, on condition of anonymity, said that the new vehicle taxation system creates opportunities for siphoning out money from the country as the CIF value is now not considered for duty calculations.

This system has been aiding money launderers and anyone who wish to send money out of the country to do so by preparing an invoice and siphoning out money, putting pressure on the already stressed foreign reserves.

Sri Lanka’s Financial Intelligence Unit ( FIU) has already signed an agreement with the Department of Motor Traffic, which registers vehicle ownership and dealers, to share information as part of efforts to fight money laundering, Central Bank sources revealed.

The FIU said it has already entered into MOUs with 37 foreign counterparts as well as seven domestic government agencies to share information to strengthen the anti money laundering framework of the country.

These local institutions are Sri Lanka Customs, Department of Immigration and Emigration, Inland Revenue Department, Department for Registration of Persons, Sri Lanka Police, Securities and Exchange Commission of Sri Lanka and Insurance Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka. (Bandula)