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From the Editor: Arizona Data Pact Leads to Major AML Prosecution
printUnder a February 2010 agreement the Arizona Attorney General struck with Western Union, the money services business (MSB) agreed to pay a $94 million penalty for not having proper anti-money laundering (AML) controls or procedures in place. Related but separate agreements won Arizona and other Southwest states access to Western Union data. The result has been a number of investigations and a federal indictment against a former Western Union agent for structuring about $68 million per year in remittances to China. That indictment came to light Thursday when Western Union cited it in a 10-Q filling with the SEC. The...
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Money launderers working on behalf of Mexican cartels have moved southward after a deferred prosecution agreement between Western Union and Arizona gave investigators unprecedented access to remittance data in Northern Mexico, according to Vince Piano.
One of the world's largest money services businesses is in danger of criminal indictment for failing to meet the terms of a 2010 settlement with the state of Arizona, say sources.
Maybe it's the thing you're supposed to say when you get a new job and have responsibility for a lot of people. Still, it was a good thing to hear from FinCEN's new director in her debut speech at a D.C. money laundering conference.
The New Mexico Attorney General's Office has expanded its team of anti-money laundering investigators as a result of a 2010 settlement between the state of Arizona and Western Union, according to the state's top prosecutor.
Unscrupulous financial institutions, legislative delays and a lack of quick action by U.S. federal officials are allowing drug cartels to wash money in the United States "right before our eyes," according to Terry Goddard, the former Attorney General of Arizona.
State prosecutors along the U.S.-Mexico border are studying whether drug traffickers are acting as subagents for Mexican banks that front payments on behalf of American money services businesses.
The implementation of U.S. dollar deposit limits at Mexican financial institutions has sparked an influx of cash deposits into U.S. banks, who are failing to properly scrutinize the funds, according to Cameron Holmes, a senior litigation counsel in the Arizona Attorney General's office.
Western Union will pay $94 million to resolve claims by the Arizona Attorney General's office that the company wasn't doing enough to combat Mexican money launderers and human traffickers.