GULF COUNTRIES DESIGNATE HEZBOLLAH AS A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION

FROM THE - CHRONICLES of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA~
~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~

The Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council has stated that the GCC nations, voting as a block, have sanctioned the Lebanese Shi'ite group known as Hezbollah, or Party of God, designating it a terrorist organization. 

This will seriously complicate Hezbollah's terrorist financing activities, and force it to seek new financial centers to move the criminal proceeds that it uses to fund itself.

In January, foreign ministers from all the Arab countries, at a summit meeting, also labeled Hezbollah as a terrorist organization; Lebanon reportedly abstained from that vote.

Hezbollah's drug trafficking activities, in the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa, all remit their profits back to the organization's headquarters in Lebanon, and this new, regional designation will cause it to attempt to access alternative financial institutions. Be alert for any new flow of funds, where their final destination is Beirut.

The members of the GCC are:

(1) The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
(2) The United Arab Emirates
(3) Kuwait
(4) Qatar
(5) Bahrain
(6) Oman

WARNING ON PANAMANIAN PEPS WITH AMERICAN PASSPORTS

FROM THE - CHRONICLES of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA~
~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~

Information from Panama that is of interest to American compliance officers: Some Panamanians have complained that a number of officials, in the present Varela administration, are naturalized US citizens, and as such should be required to show their allegiance to the Republic of Panama, by repudiating their American citizen status. This an indication that a number of Panamanian PEPs are in this category.

Compliance officers at US financial institutions should be aware that the American, of Panamanian origin*, who opens an account, and subsequently makes large deposits, could be a Politically Exposed Person (PEP), illegally in possession of government funds, or bribes & kickbacks. You will have no reason to suspect his or Panamanian PEP status, as the individual will have a US residence, drivers' license, and be a citizen of the United States.

A useful hint: whenever you are on-boarding someone with a pronounced Spanish accent, it would be prudent to learn their place of birth, not for the purpose of profiling them, but to rule out their possible PEP status in Latin America. 

In the example just mentioned above, knowing that the account holder was born in Panama would be sufficient reason to conduct enhanced due diligence, to determine whether he or she holds an official position in Panamanian government.

PEPs, even those who hold US citizenship, should always be subject to enhanced scrutiny, as well as account monitoring, and your risk-based compliance program may impose certain initial restrictions upon any account holder who could be considered a Politically Expose Person. 

_______________________________________________________________________
* Historical note: all persons born in the former Panama Canal Zone, before October 1, 1979, were US citizens by birth, but Panama also considers them Panamanian nationals.

RICARDO MARTINELLI BLACKMAILS PANAMA

FROM THE - CHRONICLES of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA~

~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~

If you were wondering why the Government of Panama, having judicially determined some time ago that it is appropriate to extradite its former president, Ricardo Martinelli, has not followed through with the issuance of the appropriate documents, you are not alone. The answer may disturb you, but it is consistent with the country's problem: the systemic corruption, past, present & future, that Panama is drowning in.

You see, many of the members of the present, reformist government, now in power, were also either in the Martinelli administration, were linked to it, and the vast majority of the senior staff, including the sitting President, Juan Carlos Varela, also profited substantially from the use of inside information, in connection with the Petaquilla Gold Mine scandal. It's not just the Martinelli cabinet that made millions of illegal profits.

 How can the Varela government allow Martinelli to be extradited, for he has promised, if put on trial, to expose all those who are as equally guilty as he is, in taking illegal stock profits, through trading with the benefit of non-public information, in the Petaquilla Mining/Financial Pacific matter. Whether this constitutes blackmail I leave to the experts in the laws of Panama.

One source has asserted that this threat was delivered by no less than Martinelli's primary criminal defense lawyer, Leonardo Paul Aparicio, who has actively sought to quash the pending proceedings, twice, through the use of procedural objections, which most lawyers would opine were presented solely for the purposes of delay. Attorney Paul has regularly visited Martinelli, at his Miami residence, and he is thought to be the lead member of the so-called Dream Team, assembled to block all efforts to return their client to stand trial in Panama.

Leonardo Paul Aparicio

If Martinelli has evidence that shows Varela, and his senior advisers, profited handsomely from insider trading, he may never be extradited, and all the talk of reform in Panama will not result in any meaningful systemic changes, and Ricardo Martinelli will cheat justice.   

WAS CANADIAN FINANCIAL ADVISER THE MASTERMIND BEHIND THE CAYMAN GANG OF FOUR ?

FROM THE - CHRONICLES Of Andrei Slavenkov Netherlands –  Analyst For Wanted SA ~ Contributed & Written By Kenneth Rijock ~

William Tynkaluk

The question of who actually organized and directed the estimated $450m theft, of assets belonging to Canadian pensioners, which has become known by the nickname of the financial professionals involved, the Cayman Gang of Four, has been a matter of dispute for six months. While some analysts believe that it was the Gang ringleader, Sharon Lexa Lamb, both the preplanning, and the scope, of the massive theft points to another, more experienced financial professional, the Canadian analyst, William (Bill) Tynkaluk.

holdings.

It is further alleged, by the victims, that Tinkaluk, together with other financial advisers, created a bogus tale, designed to instill fear among Canadian pensioners, to the effect that Canada would soon impose Draconian taxes upon the holdings of its retirees, when held in the country. The result was a mad dash to obtain advice, from Tinkaluk, as to where was a safe, and prudent, location for their wealth. He then suggested Dundee Merchant Bank, which maintained accounts at the Bank of Butterfield's Grand Cayman subsidiary.

Some of the  pensioners' money went to Grand Cayman, to be held by Dundee Bank. Other amounts disappeared in Canada, before ever arriving in the Cayman Islands; some of these sums have been tracked and traced. Bill Tynkaluk's role, in the illegal diversion of these funds, has been established, by documentary evidence.

If you are a regular reader of this blog, you know the rest of the story well; the Cayman Gang of Four reportedly stole the victims' money from Dundee Bank, where it was supposed to be in special accounts bearing the names of the investors, which did not occur. One of the victims has, thus far, filed a civil action against Gang of Four members. One individual allegedly has already received immunity, in exchange for cooperation, and assistance in the prosecution of the guilty parties. Information on the current status of the relevant Cayman and Canadian matters is, unfortunately, restricted, but we can disclose that additional proceedings are in process.

Two of the Cayman Gang of Four, Sharon Lexa Lamb and Fernando Motto Mendes, have waged a dirty, no-holds-barred, Internet and email smear campaign, against the victims and two of the whistleblowers, seeking to completely discredit them, ahead of any civil criminals  or trials which may take place in the future, and also addressing the poison pen mail to banks, government and law enforcement offices, and any other possible party that might believe their lies.

Peter John Kursell

Tynkaluk has been a willing participant in violating Canadian banking laws, in this regard. He prevailed upon his son-in-law,  Peter John Kursell, a financial adviser affiliated with a Canadian bank, to give him details of a victim's brand-new bank accounts, which Lamb immediately posted in her smear emails to multiple addressees. Lamb and Tynkaluk are believed to be in close contact, discussing strategy and tactics, in Lamb's disinformation and "shoot the messenger" program, which is intended to delay any possible criminal action against her, and the other three Gang of Four members, Mendes, Derek Buntain, and Ryan Bateman. 

In a separate matter, that victim had $10m, in bearer securities, stolen from him, by Bill Tinkaluk, when he was advising the victim, regarding his investments. The email smear program, to discredit the victims, is  designed to damage the character of the victims, so that their credibility at any future trial will be suspect, including their claims that Tinkaluk stole their stock.

Will Bill Tinkaluk end up with a felony conviction in Canada  ? We cannot say, but there are a number of investigations in progress, and we shall report on all future developments in this case, as they occur.

SHOULD THE NEW CASHLESS MONOPOLY GAME ALSO TEACH AWARENESS OF FINANCIAL CRIME ?

FROM THE - CHRONICLES of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA~

~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~

What you are looking at is the version of the classic game "Monopoly,"but with a 21st century update. it is totally cashless; no more $500 bills to hoard. the money is all electronic. What's wrong with this picture ?

This could be a teachable moment; should not the new game educate the young player about the pitfalls and dangers of cashless business ? At the very least, how about one of those twenty page documents to be accepted, before you can move money, and something about the reality of financial crime would not hurt. Keep it real, Monopoly, please.

And by the way, we're not in Sweden, so expect some player will complain about the lack of cash. Hiding your stash takes place in Monopoly, especially if you want to make an "unexpected" purchase, late in the game, where everyone thought you were broke.

GOVERNMENT OF ISRAEL DEMONSTRATES MASSIVE & DISGUSTING CORRUPTION

FROM THE - CHRONICLES of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA~
~Contributed & Written by Steven Scheer Yahoo Finance Canada~

Real Estate - Related: Meet the Next Generation of High-Tech Kitchen Appliances Source: Bob Vila

SodaStream slams Israel for not renewing Palestinian permits

JERUSALEM, March 1 (Reuters) - Fizzy drinks maker SodaStream has raised the prospect of moving work back to the West Bank after the Israeli government refused to extend work permits for its remaining 74 Palestinian workers.

SodaStream, which had promoted the idea of workplace co-existence between Israelis and Palestinians, moved its plant from the Israeli-occupied West Bank to Lehavim, a town in Israel's south, in late 2014.

It made that move after heavy pressure from the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement, which is opposed to Israel's policies towards the Palestinians including its occupation of the West Bank.

SodaStream said the BDS campaign had been counter-productive because of the Palestinian jobs lost. Israel contends that the BDS advocates the destruction of the Jewish state.

About 500 Palestinians out of nearly 1,200 workers lost their jobs in the move but SodaStream lobbied to keep on 74 Palestinians, many of them senior people. However, their permits expired at the end of February.

"If the administration does not solve this very quickly and doesn't allow Palestinians to get to their jobs we will bring the jobs to the Palestinians ... and we will not have to ask permission from any minister in the Israeli government," SodaStream Chief Executive Daniel Birnbaum said.

"If the Israeli government doesn't want to help then at least don't get in the way."

Birnbaum blamed Israeli government bureaucracy for the lack of renewal. He told reporters on Tuesday that he was informed by various ministries it was a matter of quotas.

"I find that difficult to believe," he said, noting that more than 100,000 Palestinians from the West Bank work in Israel every day. "Half have permits and half come in and work and the authorities turn a blind eye."

An official in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said: "The policy of the government is to give priority to the employment of Israeli workers."

Nabil Basharat, 42, a father of seven from Jaba Village, said he has been working for SodaStream for six years and become a department manager. "I used to make $2,000 a month or more and today I have nothing," he said, lamenting the permit problem.

NOW IT'S KYCA: KNOW YOUR COMPLIANCE ADVISER

FROM THE - CHRONICLES of Monte Friesner – Criminal & Intelligence Analyst and Consulaire for WANTED SA~
~Contributed & Written by Kenneth Rijock ~

Much has been made in the media about the multi-million dollar fine levied upon Gibraltar Private Bank, for its abject compliance failures, regarding its support of Scott Rothstein's Ponzi scheme, but there's a more important lesson here. Why didn't the bank's outside compliance adviser ever identify the problem ?

The bank's former president has filed a large civil suit, asserting that he was made a scapegoat by the bank's board, and blamed for the bank's willing role as a Ponzi banker, but the buck stops elsewhere. 

The bank had engaged a local Miami company as compliance adviser, after it came under the regulatory microscope. but it never warned the bank about a possible problem, even through all the red flags were there, and any competent competent firm should have caught them.

Scott Rothstein's law firm did not show up, on court dockets in all three South Florida Circuit Courts, as participating in anywhere the number of cases that would have been necessary to justify the huge "settlements" he sold to unsuspecting investors, who became his victims. Why wasn't this done, early on, by the bank's compliance adviser ?

The answer lies in the word competent; had the bank performed its own due diligence investigation upon the compliance firm, it would have quickly learned that the company had an abysmal record on rehabilitating financial institutions with AML/CFT issues, even though prior clients had laid out substantial fees for this service. What was wrong ?

Since 9/11, many opportunistic companies have eagerly dived into the anti-money laundering field, but a number of them are not qualified, by neither training nor experience, to offer effective advice to a financial institution that is often desperate for a quick fix to a regulatory defect.

Ask yourself these questions:

(1) Precisely what are the qualifications of the staff members at the company that make the firm a good candidate to solve your compliance problems ? Government, regulator or law enforcement experience ?

(2) What about the company's track record in its prior engagements ? How did their clients fare ? 

Therefore, you must vet your proposed compliance adviser thoroughly, often using outside resources, to be assured that you are not engaging posers, companies whose advice will not solve your problems, although they promise to get your bank off restrictions; Let the bank beware.

My advice to the directors of Gibraltar Private Bank, sue your former external compliance adviser for damages, for malpractice, in the form of a negligence action. Don't blame your former president.