Somali pirates' money is not laundered through Dubai, said Major General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Dubai Police's Deputy Commander General, in reply to a report by a British newspaper.
The newspaper, Independent, said vast sums of ransom money that the pirates received for releasing ships they hijacked in Somalia and the African Horn was laundered in Dubai and other GCC countries through piracy syndicates based in these countries.
In a statement to Emarat Al Youm Arabic daily, Al Mazeina said the allegations are baseless, and stressed that the UAE has very strict legislations against all types of money laundring.
The Independent said about $80 million has been paid out by shipping companies to pirates in 2008.
While some of the money has ended up in Somalia, millions have been laundered through bank accounts in the UAE and other parts of the Middle East, the report said.
Al Mazeina said the UAE is the only country in the region where money laundering cases were taken to court, and sentences issued.
Any amount of money exceeding Dh40,000 is monitored and considered questionable until proven otherwise.
The Independent quoted Christopher Ledger, a former Royal Marine officer and a director of the firm, saying: "There is evidence that syndicates based in the Gulf – some in Dubai – play a significant role in the piracy, which is taking place off the African coast. There are huge amounts of money involved and this gives the syndicates access to increasingly sophisticated means of moving money as well as access to modern technology in carrying out the hijackings."
Al Mazeina said the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the international organisation against money laundring, includes the Group of Seven (G7) leading industrial nations and other countries cooperating in this field, including the UAE.
"FATF issues periodic reports on uncooperative countries, and we have never received any remarks from them about such operations in the UAE, no matter how small the amounts of money," Al Mazina said.
He said Dubai Police cooperated with many countries in cracking money laundering rackets and other suspected activities, such as fraud, and played a part in arresting organised gangs.
Al Mazeina said some parties wanted to tarnish the image of the UAE through spreading these vicious rumours. "Countries that do not cooperate with efforts against money laundering are held accountable by special organisations, which do not include the media," he said.
He said that Dubai Police are always open to all reporters who want to confirm any information before publishing it. People can also view international reports on the FATF website and find out the UAE’s stand before spreading such rumours, he said.
The British newspaper published the report without any comment or feedback from security bodies in Dubai or the UAE Central Bank.
Source: Gulf News
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
0 comments:
Post a Comment