SINGAPORE – The largest money laundering case here demonstrated the strengths of Singapore’s asset recovery capabilities, but also exposed vulnerabilities in its corporate gatekeeping systems.
In its latest assessment report on Singapore released on May 6, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) said the $3 billion case, one of the world’s largest crackdowns on money laundering in 2023, showed how attractive the Republic is to criminals.
The probe came in the wake of a surge in luxury property purchases in Singapore in 2021, with reports raising concerns about sources of wealth, including dubious support documentation.
Over a period of 18 months, a multi-agency task force coordinated intelligence and investigations, with the police sending 33 informal requests to 10 jurisdictions and Singapore’s financial intelligence unit engaging with the units of at least 10 other jurisdictions.
At the same time, the police received 63 requests from 18 jurisdictions.
On Aug 15, 2023, simultaneous raids were conducted across the island. It led to the arrest of 10 foreigners who were linked to organised crime, including scams and online gambling.
Some $3 billion in assets, including cash, properties, cars, liquor, jewellery, watches and luxury bags, were seized.
The 10 were later convicted and jailed, while 15 others who left Singapore earlier agreed to forfeit about $1.85 billion worth of assets in exchange for having the Interpol notices on them withdrawn.
