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“[…] What appears to have escaped the attention of many of our law-abiding citizens is the relationship between many violent crimes and the white-collar variety.
“The foot soldiers and their gang leaders do not have the wherewithal to corrupt law-enforcement officials and, indeed, other key state officials and/or to import illegal drugs and illegal firearms.
“[…] If we are to effectively combat both serious blue-collar and white-collar crimes, a powerful and proactive Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is essential…”
The following Letter to the Editor, which offers suggestions for strengthening the FIU, was submitted to Wired868 by Louis W Williams of St Augustine:
Given our horrific murder rate and the prevalence of other violent crimes, the focus of our attention, quite understandably, has been somewhat skewed toward those who are directly involved in the execution of such crimes (the foot soldiers).
Law-abiding citizens are scared for their lives, and want those perpetrators to be apprehended and punished on a timely basis.
What appears to have escaped the attention of many of our law-abiding citizens is the relationship between many violent crimes and the white-collar variety.
The foot soldiers and their gang leaders do not have the wherewithal to corrupt law-enforcement officials and, indeed, other key state officials and/or to import illegal drugs and illegal firearms.
That falls exclusively within the domain of some very crafty and elusive individuals (the “Mr Bigs”) in our country who display a flawless public facade of respectability.
In reality, they are the ones involved behind the scenes corruptly financing illegal activities and obtaining huge financial rewards from such activities.
These individuals utilise our financial institutions in their nefarious enterprise. Accordingly, if we are to effectively combat both serious blue-collar and white-collar crimes, a powerful and proactive Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) is essential.
It would be absurd for a critical law-enforcement institution such as the FIU to be authorised to only investigate matters regarding suspicious financial activities/transactions referred to it by financial institutions.
The officials in such institutions are not trained in law-enforcement and, therefore, do not possess the appropriate forensic skills. They are at a severe disadvantage when dealing with nefarious characters who find clever ways to hide their ill-gotten gains.
Moreover, such nefarious characters have been known, globally, to successfully corrupt and/or intimidate some bank officials to get their way. As a consequence, the FIU has to be proactive and ought to be empowered to investigate suspicious financial activities/ transactions, based on information provided to it from any source.
It ought to establish a confidential contact port similar to what obtains at Crime Stoppers, where persons can anonymously report potential financial crimes.
Such confidential sources, in crime-fighting, are oftentimes on the inside and, therefore, quite familiar with the modus operandi of those nefarious persons. Those confidential sources can provide information on a host of things including the methods used to evade detection of suspicious financial activities/ transactions by financial institutions.
It is, therefore, imperative that our parliamentarians ensure that if the current legislation is deficient—in that it does not permit the FIU to commence an investigation in the absence of a report initiated by a financial institution—then the legislation ought to be suitably amended to grant such authority.
There are safeguards in the current legislation to address the leaking of the confidential information of the person being investigated, and the tipping-off of that person that he/ she is under investigation.
Any official of the FIU or other person who does so is liable to a hefty fine and imprisonment.
However, given our crime situation, the penalties should be increased to mandatory sentences of 25 years with hard labour, without the possibility of parole.
There is a lot of hysteria in some quarters, but if the FIU does an investigation and finds nothing worthy of forwarding to the police, then that is the end of the matter. No information on such matters can be disclosed to anyone under the penalty of a hefty fine/imprisonment.
In my view—given our current crime situation where the right to life and the enjoyment of one’s property is being seriously impacted by the extremely high rate of murder and other violent crimes that have their genesis in white-collar crimes—it is absolutely necessary that we allow the FIU to proactively investigate all suspicious financial activities/ transactions that come to its attention.
It is certainly reasonably justifiable for the reasons outlined above.
Obviously, if our nation has a proper respect for the rights and freedoms of the individual, it must take all appropriate measures to safeguards its inhabitants’ right to life, most of all, and to the enjoyment of their properties.
On another note, the FIU must take stern action against all those who leak the confidential information of anyone who is being investigated, and the tipping-off of such an individual.
Failure to do so is a serious dereliction of duty. Moreover, failure to pursue such a matter will embolden others to do the same as there would be no fear of consequences for such actions.
Let such perpetrators seek to convince the court that they are whistle-blowers.
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