Money Laundering: "The Vancouver Model"

[scryer]

Originally Posted by misher

Casinos would go bankrupt it’s the high rollers that pay the bills and rent the rooms.

Also money laundering is called laundering because it used to be done through laundromats. Laundering is not exclusive to casinos and blocking one method just leaves open 100 others. Not to mention all the casinos a province away.

Casinos are the biggest known launderers and the provincial government has already gotten involved so I personally think that the casinos are a great place to start. However I do agree with you that it isn't the only business/industry laundering and that we need to start scrutinizing other businesses and industries.

I don't understand why we can't shut down all legalized 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 over a certain small amount ($1000 per day per person is reasonable) for a period while we try to get a hold of the huge money laundering issue. As soon as we find what other industry mysterious money is pouring in to after the casinos are stymied we can start identifying the people moving money. It feels like we are hardly trying sometimes...

I do agree with this course of action. However the government would need to support the business in a way that the employees are unaffected. I'm not sure how realistic this next suggestion would be but it would be pretty bad 🞵🞵🞵 if the government used the laundered funds to off-set the costs of assisting casino employees so that the tax payer isn't given the shaft again.

[giallo]

Originally Posted by Conrad Yablonski

You think they aren't on the take too?

Oh, I'm sure some of them are.

[retro_orange]

'Rat's nest of rot': Up to $2B in dirty money laundered in B.C. casinos, real estate in 1 year, AG says

David Eby's new figure dwarfs initial estimates on scope of money laundering

Eric Rankin, Liam Britten · CBC News · Posted: Jan 18, 2019 9:13 PM PT | Last Updated: January 18

B.C.'s attorney general is raising the stakes on the scope of alleged money laundering in casinos and real estate in British Columbia.

David Eby now says dirty money totalling as much as $2 billion in one year flowed into B.C.'s legal and illegal casinos and luxury real estate market.

Eby said in one year, up to $1 billion passed through casinos and another $1 billion was pumped into real estate in the Lower Mainland, contributed to a red-hot property market and putting homes out of the reach of many.

"I started pulling on the thread of this casino laundering that was taking place and it has led to a real rat's nest of rot, really, in the system," Eby told CBC News in an exclusive interview.

"I think that all British Columbians should certainly be concerned about what's been happening, including, potentially, at a very high level in the real estate market."


Attorney General David Eby likened the problem of money laundering in B.C. to a "rat’s nest of rot." (CBC)

Last week, CBC News revealed secret reports that showed the amount of suspicious cash floating through B.C. casinos was as much as $1 billion spread out over seven years — about 10 times previous estimates.

The money was likely the proceeds of crime — drug money — that had to be laundered through legitimate sources to obscure its origins.

Dwarfs initial estimate

Eby's Friday claim of up to $2 billion in dirty money marks a stark increase from an estimate given by former RCMP Deputy Commissioner Peter German last the summer.

After the release of his independent report into money laundering in the province's casinos, he estimated more than $100 million may have been cleaned in B.C. amid a "collective system failure."

Eby chalked that up to "a difference of approach." German, he explained, was tasked with writing a quick report that could lead to immediate changes to stop money laundering in casinos.

"We didn't ask him to sit down and do an accounting exercise," Eby told On The Coast host Gloria Macarenko. "We knew there was an issue and he helped us with that."

If German had more time for his report, Eby believes, he would have found a larger amount of laundered cash.

Inquiry not ruled out

Eby says some of the new numbers come from an RCMP intelligence report that has not been fully shared with the province.

He described the information-sharing relationship between the federal and provincial levels as "frustrating." Since the alleged money laundering has an international component, he explained, the federal government needs to be a dependable partner.

"This is a very serious issue and I believe an issue of national concern," Eby stated. "These are staggering numbers. Incredibly troubling."


Metro Vancouver real estate is alleged to be an avenue used by gangsters for laundering drug money. (Gian-Paolo Mendoza/CBC)

However, he believes both Ralph Goodale, the minister of Public Safety and Bill Blair, minister of Organized Crime Reduction "get it."

Eby said he has a meeting with Blair next week and cooperation on money laundering will be top of the agenda.

B.C. Liberal government displayed "significant willful blindness" on the file, Eby accused.

A public inquiry into how money laundering flourished in B.C., he added, has not been ruled out.

With files from CBC Radio One's On The Coast

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-dirty-money-casinos-1.4985203


2B in 1 year...WTF.

[misher]

It’s hard to know if the numbers being thrown around are accurate or are being used so political ammo.

I wish this was coming straight from the police.

[whatnext]

From Global today, the casino laundering amounts just keep going up:

Regulators believe about $1.7 billion flowed through special B.C. Lottery Corp. high-roller accounts with large amounts funded by loan sharks and criminal bank drafts, a Global News investigation shows.

The new information, which is revealed in B.C. Gaming Enforcement Branch audit documents obtained by Global News, means that estimates for the totals laundered in B.C. casinos will skyrocket.

Previously, official money laundering estimates in B.C.’s casino scandal have focused on loan sharks and gamblers using bundles of dirty cash and suspicious transactions in casino high-limit cash cages.

But documents obtained through freedom-of-information requests show that regulators believe organized crime loan sharks and Chinese high-rollers are now using more sophisticated channels to launder cash into bank drafts and through B.C. Lottery Corp. “patron gaming fund” accounts..

...Already, with the cash-only transaction laundering methods used by Chinese VIPs and loan sharks, over $600-million in suspected dirty money washed through B.C. casinos from 2010 into 2016, Gaming Enforcement Branch documents show. Most of this cash was in $20 bills, the favoured currency in B.C.’s illegal drug trade.

But now, by adding the “suspected dirty money” that regulators believe has flowed through $1.7 billion worth of questionable patron gaming funds, estimates of money laundered through B.C. casinos from 2010 to 2018 could reach $2 billion....

....But according to regulators, the biggest indicator of money laundering in patron gaming accounts is the gamblers who use them, and their method of going to B.C. loan sharks as funding sources to avoid China’s capital export controls.

Documents indicate that an incredibly small number of foreign high-rollers — the top 10 VIPs from China — accounted for almost half of the $1.7 billion that flowed through patron gaming accounts from 2013 to 2017....

...Documents and gaming investigators say these Lottery Corp. patrons were the biggest “whale” gamblers from China. There was a rotating cast of about 50 high-rollers at any given time, who typically visited B.C. to 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 for several weeks or months before returning to China. And they liked to bet millions per night in Vancouver-area Lottery Corp. casinos.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4897032/bc-casinos-money-laundering/


Maybe it is time to ban gamblers from China from BC casinos.

[scryer]

Originally Posted by whatnext

From Global today, the casino laundering amounts just keep going up:

Regulators believe about $1.7 billion flowed through special B.C. Lottery Corp. high-roller accounts with large amounts funded by loan sharks and criminal bank drafts, a Global News investigation shows.

The new information, which is revealed in B.C. Gaming Enforcement Branch audit documents obtained by Global News, means that estimates for the totals laundered in B.C. casinos will skyrocket.

Previously, official money laundering estimates in B.C.’s casino scandal have focused on loan sharks and gamblers using bundles of dirty cash and suspicious transactions in casino high-limit cash cages.

But documents obtained through freedom-of-information requests show that regulators believe organized crime loan sharks and Chinese high-rollers are now using more sophisticated channels to launder cash into bank drafts and through B.C. Lottery Corp. “patron gaming fund” accounts..

...Already, with the cash-only transaction laundering methods used by Chinese VIPs and loan sharks, over $600-million in suspected dirty money washed through B.C. casinos from 2010 into 2016, Gaming Enforcement Branch documents show. Most of this cash was in $20 bills, the favoured currency in B.C.’s illegal drug trade.

But now, by adding the “suspected dirty money” that regulators believe has flowed through $1.7 billion worth of questionable patron gaming funds, estimates of money laundered through B.C. casinos from 2010 to 2018 could reach $2 billion....

....But according to regulators, the biggest indicator of money laundering in patron gaming accounts is the gamblers who use them, and their method of going to B.C. loan sharks as funding sources to avoid China’s capital export controls.

Documents indicate that an incredibly small number of foreign high-rollers — the top 10 VIPs from China — accounted for almost half of the $1.7 billion that flowed through patron gaming accounts from 2013 to 2017....

...Documents and gaming investigators say these Lottery Corp. patrons were the biggest “whale” gamblers from China. There was a rotating cast of about 50 high-rollers at any given time, who typically visited B.C. to 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 for several weeks or months before returning to China. And they liked to bet millions per night in Vancouver-area Lottery Corp. casinos.
https://globalnews.ca/news/4897032/bc-casinos-money-laundering/

Next industry: Real Estate.

[whatnext]

W5 has done a major piece of investigative reporting into money laundering. It boggles the mind that the Feds were incompetent enough to let this case collapse.

It has been hard to grasp just how deep and wide the rot has been.

Court cases have collapsed, news conferences cancelled, and political leaders stonewalled in multiple attempts to inform the public of the magnitude of British Columbia’s problem with illegal 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵...

.....
In this week’s W5 investigation, he reveals his identity in public for the first time, hoping it will help all Canadians appreciate the scope of our country’s problem with organized crime and money laundering.

It’s a massive problem in Vancouver, but the city isn’t alone.

It is, at first, shocking to hear what is finally being brought to light. In the words of former RCMP Deputy Commissioner Peter German, who was hired by B.C.’s NDP government to probe the province’s private casinos, “The regulator wasn't regulating, the police weren't policing.”

Is it ever possible to know whether that was by design or willful ignorance? Calls are growing in B.C. for a full public inquiry into the billions of dirty dollars flowing across the Lower Mainland.

What our investigation also reveals for the first time, is how complex the RCMP case against an alleged illegal bank was. Dozens of officers working to build a legal case that might have set a precedent for how courts deal with evidence of money laundering, If only it hadn’t collapsed weeks before the trial was set to begin...

https://www.ctvnews.ca/w5/w5-investigate...-has-b-c-awash-in-illegal-cash-1.4287337

[whatnext]

Interesting, Global reported yesterday that RCMP suspected somebody withing the BC Lottery Corporation was tipping off the Chinese money launderers. And yet we haven't heard of any firings at BCLC. They also suspected someone within teh gov't (BC Liberal ruled at the time):

Senior police officers were concerned B.C. government officials might have leaked information that “compromised” October, 2015 RCMP raids targeting sophisticated alleged underground casinos in Richmond, B.C., according to records from a B.C. Lottery Corp. whistle-blower.

The records obtained by Global News and source interviews suggest that as RCMP’s Federal Serious and Organized Crime (FSOC) unit ramped up casino money laundering and underground banking investigations in 2015, senior police and B.C. Gaming Policy Enforcement Branch (GPEB) investigators increasingly viewed B.C. Lottery Corp. (BCLC) — and possibly others in B.C.’s government — with distrust.

“Discussed sensitivity in sharing information as Operation was compromised,” Alderson’s notes say. “No. 4 Rd Location had original warrant date (Oct 14) circled on a calendar. Concerns Govt knew more than Senior Police did.”

The E-Pirate raids of 11 locations, including an alleged underground bank in a Richmond office building and luxurious homes that RCMP said hosted illegal casinos, targeted a suspected organized crime loan shark named Paul King Jin and a number of Lottery Corp. high-rollers from China, according to Alderson’s notes.

“11 locations hit – Some residential. No arrests at gaming houses (vacant),” Alderson’s notes said...
But for some reason, information sharing with the Lottery Corp. had gone sour by September 2015, according to a report filed that month by Alderson.

In his September 2015 report, Alderson wrote he had “received information that senior police had directed their operational staff to deal with GPEB rather than BCLC. Comments were made that there had been unwillingness by BCLC leadership to address, what was in the police’s eyes, clear acceptance of huge volumes of cash which ‘one could reasonably suspect were likely proceeds of crime.’”..
https://globalnews.ca/news/4949413/as-rc...-police-distrust-of-b-c-government-grew/

[misher]

So the police have tons of resources we can pull off to focus on money laundering....not. Just as I thought the police are spread thin as it is.

https://vancouversun.com/news/crime/gun-...implemented-despite-ongoing-violence/amp


Not even enough resources to keep 🞵🞵🞵🞵 off our streets.

[rofina]

Originally Posted by whatnext

Interesting, Global reported yesterday that RCMP suspected somebody withing the BC Lottery Corporation was tipping off the Chinese money launderers. And yet we haven't heard of any firings at BCLC. They also suspected someone within teh gov't (BC Liberal ruled at the time):

Senior police officers were concerned B.C. government officials might have leaked information that “compromised” October, 2015 RCMP raids targeting sophisticated alleged underground casinos in Richmond, B.C., according to records from a B.C. Lottery Corp. whistle-blower.

The records obtained by Global News and source interviews suggest that as RCMP’s Federal Serious and Organized Crime (FSOC) unit ramped up casino money laundering and underground banking investigations in 2015, senior police and B.C. Gaming Policy Enforcement Branch (GPEB) investigators increasingly viewed B.C. Lottery Corp. (BCLC) — and possibly others in B.C.’s government — with distrust.

“Discussed sensitivity in sharing information as Operation was compromised,” Alderson’s notes say. “No. 4 Rd Location had original warrant date (Oct 14) circled on a calendar. Concerns Govt knew more than Senior Police did.”

The E-Pirate raids of 11 locations, including an alleged underground bank in a Richmond office building and luxurious homes that RCMP said hosted illegal casinos, targeted a suspected organized crime loan shark named Paul King Jin and a number of Lottery Corp. high-rollers from China, according to Alderson’s notes.

“11 locations hit – Some residential. No arrests at gaming houses (vacant),” Alderson’s notes said...
But for some reason, information sharing with the Lottery Corp. had gone sour by September 2015, according to a report filed that month by Alderson.

In his September 2015 report, Alderson wrote he had “received information that senior police had directed their operational staff to deal with GPEB rather than BCLC. Comments were made that there had been unwillingness by BCLC leadership to address, what was in the police’s eyes, clear acceptance of huge volumes of cash which ‘one could reasonably suspect were likely proceeds of crime.’”..
https://globalnews.ca/news/4949413/as-rc...-police-distrust-of-b-c-government-grew/

The latest news corroborates my worst suspicions - too much money involved, too many high ranking government officials knew of the magnitude, this investigation was killed on purpose.

This is corruption on an unimaginable scale - but outside of a few articles the general public really doesn't seem to care too much.

[misher]

Originally Posted by rofina

The latest news corroborates my worst suspicions - too much money involved, too many high ranking government officials knew of the magnitude, this investigation was killed on purpose.

This is corruption on an unimaginable scale - but outside of a few articles the general public really doesn't seem to care too much.

Yes its a conspiracy! Government officials are being paid cash by money launderers to hide it!

The same for drug crime, murders, etc, government officials get kickbacks from all of them so they order the police to stop investigations into these crimes.

Thats why we have all crime, because of corruption. The government deliberately allows all crime to occur.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by misher

So the police have tons of resources we can pull off to focus on money laundering....not. Just as I thought the police are spread thin as it is.

https://vancouversun.com/news/crime/gun-...implemented-despite-ongoing-violence/amp


Not even enough resources to keep 🞵🞵🞵🞵 off our streets.

Again, you're misunderstanding how the police work. That's like saying "how can we go to Mars if we can't cure cancer?" Different departments doing different things.

[misher]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Again, you're misunderstanding how the police work. That's like saying "how can we go to Mars if we can't cure cancer?" Different departments doing different things.

Why would a provincial government be researching into money laundering when we have a Federal government that’s in charge of investigating and prosecuting it and an international global organization that does a ton of research/studies into it.

And why would they be spending resources when we already don’t have enough resources to chase other more serious/dangerous crimes. If there’s extra resources give them to the RCMP.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by misher

Why would a provincial government be researching into money laundering when we have a Federal government that’s in charge of investigating and prosecuting it and an international global organization that does a ton of research/studies into it.

Because the Feds aren't doing their own investigation (and may or may not be actively hindering ours)? They're busy with Huawei.

[misher]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Because the Feds aren't doing their own investigation (and may or may not be actively hindering ours)? They're busy with Huawei.

Then vote for a different Federal government. Its not a provincial matter. Its like saying the Canadian military 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 so lets start a provincial one.

We have a clear separation of power and responsibilities here. If the provincial government has to cover everything we feel isn't done well by the other governments then we're blowing money paying two separate people to do the same thing.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by misher

And why would they be spending resources when we already don’t have enough resources to chase other more serious/dangerous crimes. If there’s extra resources give them to the RCMP.

Lack of progress =/= lack of resources. And the RCMP is perceived as ineffective compared to a local PD - that's why Surrey wants their own.

Originally Posted by misher

Then vote for a different Federal government. Its not a provincial matter. Its like saying the Canadian military 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 so lets start a provincial one.

We have a clear separation of power and responsibilities here. If the provincial government has to cover everything we feel isn't done well by the other governments then we're blowing money paying two separate people to do the same thing.

Might be time to brush up on how checks and balances work.

Related powers are available to the provincial legislatures under the following headings of section 92:

9. Shop, Saloon, Tavern, Auctioneer, and other Licences in order to the raising of a Revenue for Provincial, Local, or Municipal Purposes.

14. The Administration of Justice in the Province, including the Constitution, Maintenance, and Organization of Provincial Courts, both of Civil and of Criminal Jurisdiction, and including Procedure in Civil Matters in those Courts.

15. The Imposition of Punishment by Fine, Penalty, or Imprisonment for enforcing any Law of the Province made in relation to any Matter coming within any of the Classes of Subjects enumerated in this Section.

16. Generally all Matters of a merely local or private Nature in the Province.

Administration of justice

This power entitles the provinces to establish police forces, prosecution services, penitentiaries, parole services, and ancillary agencies associated with the administration of criminal justice in the province. By its nature, its operation is interconnected with the criminal law power.

As held in Attorney General of Canada v. Canadian National Transportation, Ltd.,[1] the administration of justice does not embrace prosecutorial authority respecting the federal criminal law. This can be exercised by either level of government under terms prescribed by federal law.

This isn't a top-down centralized autocracy. The feds make the law, the provinces enforce it, and there's been a whole lot of overlap between the two since Confederation. It's a problem mainly concentrated in BC and affecting BC's populace - obviously, it's a job for BC's government. And they're not doing the same thing, because the feds aren't doing anything.

[misher]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Lack of progress =/= lack of resources. And the RCMP is perceived as ineffective compared to a local PD - that's why Surrey wants their own.



Might be time to brush up on how checks and balances work.



This isn't a top-down centralized autocracy. The feds make the law, the provinces enforce it, and there's been a whole lot of overlap between the two since Confederation. It's a problem mainly concentrated in BC and affecting BC's populace - obviously, it's a job for BC's government. And they're not doing the same thing, because the feds aren't doing anything.

It’s not concentrated in BC ....what makes you think that. It’s the latest newsworthy craze to blame real estate prices on but it’s been happening worldwide for centuries.

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by misher

It’s not concentrated in BC ....what makes you think that. It’s the latest newsworthy craze to blame real estate prices on but it’s been happening worldwide for centuries.

Using that logic, we should completely bypass the government of Canada and get the UN to investigate this!

We have spent the last six pages talking about money laundering in BC's economy. Not Saskatchewan's, not Australia's, not the world's. British Columbia is the haven for dirty money in Canada. Naturally the province is and should be addressing the problem.

[misher]

Originally Posted by Migrant_Coconut

Using that logic, we should completely bypass the government of Canada and get the UN to investigate this!

We have spent the last six pages talking about money laundering in BC's economy. Not Saskatchewan's, not Australia's, not the world's. British Columbia is the haven for dirty money in Canada. Naturally the province is and should be addressing the problem.

Honest question, what evidence is there that BC has much more money laundering than the rest of Canada?

[Migrant_Coconut]

Originally Posted by misher

Honest question, what evidence is there that BC has much more money laundering than the rest of Canada?

Have you read about Quebec or Newfoundland finding dirty money in everything from their 🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵🞵 to their cosmetics?