November 11, 2021
Fraud Newsletter 60 October 2021
CASES
R v Adams [2021] EWCA Crim 1525 s.29 of the Serious Crime Act 2007 does not provide a jurisdictional time limit on the making of a serious crime prevention order.
SENTENCING AND CONFISCATION
Waring [2021] EWCA Crim 1369: Available amount to include as a tainted gift the value of an asset stolen to order for a fee.
BILLS, STATUTES & STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
Financial Services Act 2021 (Commencement No 3) Regulations 2021 (SI 2021/1173) Maximum sentence for insider dealing increased to 10 years in force as from 1 Nov 21.
Criminal Procedure (Amendment No 2) Rules 2021 (SI 2021/849) in force from 4 Oct 21.
CONSULTATIONS, GUIDANCE, CIRCULARS AND REPORTS
HMRC Policy Paper on Economic Crime (Anti-Money Laundering) Levy 27 Oct 21.
OFSI Annual Review 2020-2021 18 Oct 21.
Police, Crime and Sentencing and Courts Bill 2021: draft guidance Includes draft code of practice on extraction of information from electronic devices.
Fraud Sector charter: accountancy: updated 26 Oct 21 Home Office.
AML Transaction Monitoring in the Markets Sector: 20 Oct 21: AFME (Assoc. for Financial Markets in Europe).
Financial Crime: analysis of firms’ 2017-2020 REP-CRIM data: 7 Oct 21: FCA.
Who suffers fraud? Understanding the fraud victim landscape: 13 Oct 21: Victims Commissioner. News story – fraud surged 24% under COVID: 700k victims pa likely to be highly vulnerable and seriously harmed.
Private prosecutions: fighting back against crime: Edmonds & Fairbrother (EMM) – how private criminal prosecutions offer a route to redress to victims of economic or financial crime: PL (Practical law) Magazine 30 Sep 21.
NEWS
CPS:
- International city businesses hand over €34m proceeds of crime in the UK’s largest account forfeiture: 22 Oct 21.
FCA:
- NatWest faces fine over money laundering failings – £365m (of which £264m in cash) over 5 years from a jeweller with predicted t/o of £15m pa: 7 Oct 21: BBC News.
- Credit Suisse fined £350m over Mozambique ‘tuna bonds’ loan scandal: 20 Oct 21: Guardian: 19 Oct 21: FCA
NCA:
- Cash Forfeiture Order for £560k found in car to Eurotunnel: 14 Oct 21.
- House buyers and businesses warned of payment diversion fraud: multi-crime agency campaign: 25 Oct 21.
- Chinese family agree to surrender London properties following ML allegations: value £1.6m: 28 Oct 21.
SFO:
- Petrofac pleads to 7 counts of s 7 counts UKBA fined over £47m, confiscation £22.8m and £7m SFO costs: 4 Oct 21.
- Investigation into Speciality Steels closed: 14 Oct 21: Bloomberg News
- Investigation into Manchester and Liverpool developer closed (New Chinatown and Angelgate developments): 15 Oct 21: BBC
- Flight-risk suspect in Raedex car-leasing investigation arrested: 20 Oct 21: SFO
- SFO withheld ‘potentially embarrassing’ evidence in Unaoil bribery probe, court hears: 21 Oct 21: F.T
- SFO granted year-long postponement to G4S trial: 21 Oct 21: F.T
HOME:
- Autumn Budget: £1.9bn for criminal justice system (incl. £80m increase for CPS by 2024-25 and increase in core funding of SFO.)
- Banking industry-funded police unit (DCPCU) prevents £85m of fraud in first half of year: Dedicated Card and Payment Unit: UK Finance: 20 Sep 21.
- KPMG was ‘untruthful’ in defence against Silentnight fine: first time such a finding made: Reuters: 13 Oct 21. Report of Independent Disciplinary Tribunal.
EU & ABROAD:
- Offshore havens and hidden riches of world leaders and billionaires exposed in unprecedented leak – The Pandora Papers 4m documents from 14 sources exposing secret offshore monies in tax havens and the dealings of world leaders, politicians and billionaires ICIJ: 3 Oct 21: BBC News Summary: 4 Oct 21; Panorama Expose (30 minutes- available until Sept 2022). Pandora Papers Lay Bare Britain’s Role as Facilitator of Global Corruption: 3 Oct 21: Transparency Internat.
- Swiss police raid Credit Suisse offices over Greensill Capital funds: 3 Oct: City A.M.
- Major fraudulent online German investment platform taken down: losses between €15m and €500M: 11 Oct 21: Eurojust.
- Credit Suisse Resolves Fraudulent Mozambique Loan Case in $547M Coordinated Global Resolution: 19 Oct 21: DoJ.
- Australia’s financial regulator closes probe into Rio Tinto payment to consultant 22 Oct 21: Reuters
Rolls Royce settles Brazilian bribery case: 27 Oct 21. G.I.R.