Charles Taylor, Jr., also known as "Chuckie," the namesake son of the former Liberian President, was found guilty yesterday, in the US District Court in Miami, of leading a campaign that tortured opponents of his father's regime. He faces a sentence of up to life in prison on the eight charges that included Conspiracy, Torture and use of a firearm during a violent criminal act.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, FinCEN, has created a Pending Rulemakings page in its website. You will find this feature helpful, especially in light of the fact that the agency just withdrew AML Rule Proposals for unregistered investment companies, commodity trading advisors and investment advisors first published in 2002 and 2003.

Sometimes, the jargon employed in the financial industry is descriptive of the term and sometimes it is outright misleading. Today I read such a term, appearing in an article about life settlement investments. The writer referred to them as "Longevity Assets." Whilst I appreciate a good synonym as much as the next man,  life settlements (often referred to as Traded Life Policies in the UK and elsewhere) are often misunderstood by laymen, and even seasoned financial professionals. Sometimes, senior settlements is also used in lieu of the generally-understood term, but in an industry which previously was permeated by a large number of fraudsters, please call a spade a spade; don't add to the confusion. They are life settlements or at worst senior life settlements.

The US Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control, OFAC, has designated three *prominent members of the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, also known as the LIFG**, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organisation (SDGT) by the US since 23 September, 2001. The organisation is also on the United Nations Consolidated List of Al-Qaeda and Taliban associates.

A Maine man* was recently sentenced, in US District Court, to two years' probation, for assisting a marijuana smuggler to launder drug profits through the purchase of a farmhouse he helped buy for a career criminal who reportedly ran a multi-million dollar cross-border distribution network. What is troubling about the sentence is that the governmental guidelines, which are admittedly not mandatory, scored out at 8-14 months' incarceration, and the US Attorney recommended five months, due to Substantial Assistance. The defendant faced, in theory, a maximum of ten years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. What's wrong with this picture?

The Financial Services Authority (FSA) fined a firm and its Money Laundering Reporting Officer (MLRO) for inadequate AML systems, and ineffective controls for the verification and entry of client identities. The FSA stated that "this is the first time the FSA has fined a money laundering reporting officer." The fines imposed were £47,000 against the firm, and £17,500 against the MLRO.

The 6.4 magnitude earthquake that struck Southwest Pakistan recently could result in new efforts by designated terrorist organisations to finance their operations through the appropriation, diversion or theft of charitable relief intended to aid the victims of this catastrophe, which reportedly killed at least 160, and injured an undetermined number of people. It is estimated that at least 12,000 are now homeless. Do not let bogus or terrorist-controlled charities send aid through your bank. 

The Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has clarified its policy on the application of the new maximum penalty amounts. The agency's specific clarification states "in those cases in which a Prepenalty Notice was issued after October 16, 2007, but before September 8, 2008*, OFAC will honour the terms of the Prepenalty Notice and will continue to process the case according to the Enforcement Guidelines or Banking Enforcement Procedures, pursuant to which the Prepayment Notice was prepared." Thus, the new penalties will not apply to previously-pending cases.

A recently-released unclassified white paper* by US Army Military Intelligence discussing possible use of the latest hi-tech mobile applications by terrorist organisations has a section titled "Potential Terrorist Use of Twitter." Since there are always non-terrorist criminal uses for any effective tool, I wonder how many money launderers have also read the article, and are already employing Twitter, or similar technology, to launder money through our banks?

The Government of Mexico has reported that it has arrested the alleged cartel kingpin, Eduardo Arellano Felix, wanted in the US for money laundering and drug smuggling. Arellano Felix, also known as El Doctor, as he is believed to be a surgeon, was reportedly captured in Tijuana after a major gun battle with Mexican soldiers and Federal Police. It is believed that he will be extradited to the United States to face the pending charges.