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PNP, AMLC boost collab vs money launderers, terror financiers

January 21, 2025 Alfred P. Dalizon 101 views

TerrorTHE Philippine National Police (PNP) is further boosting its partnership with the Anti-Money Laundering Council to stop the flow of illegal funds coming from money launderers and terror financiers in the country.

PNP chief General Rommel Francisco D. Marbil earlier highlighted the strong collaboration between the PNP and the AMLC in upholding the rule of law, preserving the integrity of the financial system and ensuring the security of the nation.

To do this, the national police force is continuing to enhance its capabilities, improve intelligence gathering and analysis, and streamline investigative processes as it works closely with the AMLC to identify emerging trends, share best practices and develop targeted strategies to effectively disrupt the financial networks of criminal syndicates.

The PNP currently has a network of highly-trained financial investigators partnering with the AMLC to protect the country’s financial system and prevent the misuse of funds for criminal purposes.

As a result, the two agencies have assisted each other in dismantling criminal networks, disrupting the flow of illicit funds, and bringing the perpetrators to justice over the years thru information-sharing and collaborative operations to address money-laundering and other related offenses under the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2001 and The Terrorism Financing Prevention and Suppression Act of 2012.

Main PNP units involved in the fight against money-launderers are the PNP Intelligence Group, Anti-Kidnapping Group, Criminal Investigation and Detection Group and the Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group.

The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency said that a total of P518,480,814.39 worth of assets and properties of suspected drug lords and their cohorts in the country, all tagged as ‘proceeds’ of their illegal activities, have been seized by the Marcos government from 2022 to 2024.

The Agency said those ‘drug proceeds’ have been subjected to civil forfeiture proceedings and are already covered with a freeze order issued by the Court of Appeals.

Out of the figure, P4,039,080.00 worth of parcels of land, motor vehicles and firearms belonging to drug money launderers were forfeited in favor of the government, while cash in bank accounts, vehicles and plots of lands amounting to P514,441,734.39 were either frozen or preserved.

The portions of said drug money were the subject of 28 money laundering cases referred by the PDEA to the AMLC for financial investigation.

A total of 41 cases were also filed before the Department of Justice during the 2-year period.

In a statement, the Agency said that the institutionalization of PDEA Deputized Anti-Money Laundering Council Financial Investigators or DAFIs tasked to investigate monetary instruments such as bank accounts and insurance policies believed to be used to launder drug money, “was a real shot in the arm for the country’s drug money laundering investigations previously done by a limited number of AMLC investigators.”

Gathered by PDEA, pieces of evidence from predicate crimes are referred to the AMLC after establishing probable cause required in the filing of applications for bank inquiry, petitions for freeze orders, civil forfeiture cases and criminal complaints, all associated with money laundering.

The entrenchment of financial and money laundering investigation functions in its organizational thrust is PDEA’s contribution to the Philippines’ effort to exit the grey list of Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.

PDEA, in collaboration with the AMLC, DOJ and other private and public entities, will continue to track down the trail of drug money and cut the flow of proceeds from sale of illegal drugs by arresting, forfeiting and freezing the assets of drug money launderers this year, a statement released by PDEA Public Information Office chief Director Laurefel P. Gabales said.

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