The United States Department of Justice has been cracking down on loan sharks in the past few years, and now a lawyer is advising them to take more stringent measures. This comes after the DOJ shut down a major loan shark operation that was laundering money from illegal activities.

The silver international is a casino that has been fined for not taking stricter money laundering measures. They are now being sued by the US government.

Cullen’s Commission takes another strange turn this week, with the B.C. money laundering hearings coming to a close after two years. Greg DelBigio, the lawyer for infamous loan shark Paul King Jin, has urged the commission to enact tighter anti-money laundering procedures and increase RCMP participation in order to combat the issue.

The panel, led by Justice Austin Cullen, is finishing up hearings for its investigation into suspected money laundering in British Columbia casinos. Mr. Jin’s lawyer made oral and written final arguments to the inquiry on Tuesday, claiming that his client was probed by the RMCP but never prosecuted.

Affirmative Claim

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Mr. DelBigio said at the Tuesday hearing that there was never enough evidence to charge his client. He also urged Justice Cullen to tread carefully while advocating for more law enforcement authority. When it came to money laundering at B.C. casinos, the lawyer thinks the RCMP required more tools and less constraints.

Mr. Jin had already attempted, but failed, to keep a 653-page summary of litigation and accusations against him out of the evidence. The report contains details on loans linked to “high-risk” gamblers who were engaged in shady deals involving large cash buy-ins at the province’s casinos.

Mr. Jin explains in his affidavit that he is in the business of private lending, and he also failed to compel the Commission to provide him an order stating that the phrase “loan shark” does not apply to him, according to the document. Mr. Jin’s attorneys said that he is currently defending himself against the civil forfeiture allegations, and information from the investigation indicates that he may be the subject of an ongoing investigation.

Several recommendations to enhance monitoring and information sharing have been made throughout the Commission’s tenure, according to BCCLA lawyer Jessica Magonet. However, she is not sure that the modifications would be able to address the money laundering problem, believing that it will be too costly and infringe on privacy rights.

“Investigative Planning” is a term used to describe the process of planning an investigation.

The committee heard one of the most startling pieces of evidence that money laundering did occur at the casinos on Tuesday. According to a 2012 RCMP investigation, Starlight Casino and River Rock Casino played a significant role in the money laundering process, since the two casinos competed for the patronage of renowned loan shark Li Lin Sha, even designing special VIP suites for him.

Reappearance of a Whistleblower

In September, the panel was able to hear testimony from Ross Alderson, the former head of the anti-money laundering unit, who had finally responded to the inquiry’s requests. Mr. Alderson claims that he saw a suspicious cash transaction at River Rock Casino in 2010 and attempted to interfere, but was prevented by the casino’s management. He was informed that he didn’t have the authority to interrogate gamblers about their earnings.

Source: Jason Proctor, CBC, October 19, 2021, “Lawyer for accused loan shark warns money laundering investigation against demands for greater enforcement.”

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  • shylocking

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