THE Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) raised the possibility that banks and their employees may be complicit in the release of funds from accounts linked to the anomalous flood control projects.
In a radio interview, AMLC Executive Director Matthew M. David said if this were the case, the AMLC can initiate an examination or compliance checking against the banks, including their employees.
David said AMLC can also file criminal cases of money laundering against banks and their employees who are complicit in the current corruption controversy.
‘Pwede pong mangyari na kasabwat ang mga bangko [It’s possible that some banks are complicit]. Unang una [First among them are], supervisors [of] covered persons, we can initiate examination or compliance checking against the banks, including their employees,’ David said.
‘[This form of] money laundering that a bank employee can do is called facilitating-money laundering offense through facilitating of the transaction,’ he added.
David said banks should file suspicious transaction reports to the AMLC if there are withdrawals that are suspicious, as provided under the law.
He said if the bank, compliance officer or bank manager thinks a withdrawal is possibly related to corruption, they should file a suspicious transaction report. If they do not do that, AMLC will never know.
‘Ang tawag natin sa mga [We call the] banks and covered persons [the] first line of defense. Because the banks are the first that can see this, not the AMLC. They’re the first that can see, detect or even prevent these unlawful activities,’ he added, partly in Filipino.
Meanwhile, David said AMLC included in its investigation foreign assets of the respondents. This includes offshore bank accounts, real properties or properties acquired by respondents in other countries.
Through mutual legal assistance (MLAT), David said AMLC can request foreign entities to file a civil forfeiture abroad in order to return these to the national government.
‘We are coordinating with our foreign counterparts to determine if they are respondents in financial transactions abroad; they share that with us. And they share whatever properties these people may have overseas,’ David said.
To date, AMLC has immobilized P4.2 billion worth of assets linked to the alleged irregularities in flood control spending.
This was after AMLC secured its fourth freeze order from the Court of Appeals on Friday. The latest order covered 57 bank accounts, 10 real properties, and nine motor vehicles.
AMLC expects the latest valuation of frozen assets will increase as the flood control inquiry progresses.
The Court of Appeals has frozen a total of 1,620 bank accounts, 54 insurance policies, 163 motor vehicles, 40 real properties and 12 e-wallet accounts.
AMLC said the assets seized include high-value holdings such as a luxury compound in a prime urban district, multiple high-end vehicles, virtual currencies and unit investment trust funds.
The Council said it remains committed to tracing financial links to public sector anomalies.