| The Money Laundering Reporting Officer is responsible for ensuring that any information regarding the knowledge or suspicion of money laundering is properly disclosed to the relevant authority when necessary. |
The Money Laundering Reporting Officer is responsible for:
• Maintaining awareness of Money Laundering and training individuals so that the council’s policies and procedures are carried out effectively
• Receiving Money Laundering Reports from anyone who is suspicious of what is potentially money laundering conduct
• Investigating suspicious reports of money laundering
• Making external reports to the National Crime Agency (NCA) |
| The Money Laundering Reporting Officer is the Head of Audit, Fraud and Insurance and the deputy is the Senior Investigator in the Fraud Team. |
| Reports should be made direct to the Money Laundering Reporting Officer, Deputy Money Laundering Reporting Officer or via fraud@basingstoke.gov.uk. |
| 2. Reporting Signs of Money Laundering |
| Anyone who knows or suspects that money laundering is taking place, must immediately report their suspicions to the Money Laundering Reporting Officer using the Money Laundering Report Form (at the end of this guidance). |
The disclosure of suspicious activity to the Money Laundering Reporting Officer should contain as much information as possible including:
• Full details of the people involved
• The nature, value and timing of the activity involved:
If you are concerned that your involvement in a transaction would amount to a prohibited act under section 327-329 of the Proceeds of Crime Act, then your report must include all relevant details, as you will need consent from the National Crime Agency, via the Money Laundering Reporting Officer, to take any further part in the transaction.
• The reasons for suspicions regarding money laundering
• Whether previous investigations have been undertaken (if known)
• Whether or not suspicions have been discussed with anyone else |
| Anyone who reports a matter to the Money Laundering Reporting Officer must follow any instructions that they may provide. |
| They must not make any further enquiries into the matter. |
| The individual suspected of being involved in money laundering activities must not be informed of the suspicion, even if the National Crime Agency has given consent to a particular transaction proceeding. |
| This would amount to “tipping off” and may result in criminal proceedings being brought against the individual who made the disclosure to the suspected individual. |
| No reference should be made on a client file or in records that the Money Laundering Reporting Officer has been notified. Should the client exercise their right to see the file, then such a note will obviously tip them off to the report having been made. |
| 3. Considerations of Disclosure by the Money Laundering Reporting Officer |
| The Money Laundering Reporting Officer will send a report to the National Crime Agency if there are sufficient grounds of suspicion or knowledge of money laundering. |
They must evaluate any report and consider the following when determining reasonable grounds:
• Does the reported conduct fall within that which is potentially criminal?
• Is the reported individual suspected of having gained proceeds of money laundering?
• What factors and information led to the suspicion or knowledge of money laundering? |
| A reasonable cause of suspicion or knowledge of money laundering is required. Mere speculation is unlikely to be sufficient to allow for an investigation. |
| The Money Laundering Reporting Officer will consider the disclosure report and any other information available to them and undertake any other reasonable enquiries they think are appropriate before submitting a report to the National Crime Agency. |
| If the Money Laundering Reporting Officer concludes actual or suspected money laundering is taking place then, unless there are reasonable grounds for non-disclosure, the matter must be disclosed to the National Crime Agency in the prescribed manner using the Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) system. |
If the Money Laundering Reporting Officer suspects money laundering but has reasonable grounds for non-disclosure to the National Crime Agency, or concludes there are no reasonable grounds to suspect or confirm money laundering, the disclosure report must be annotated accordingly with the reasons for their decision. Consent can be given for any ongoing or imminent transactions to proceed.
|
| In cases where legal privilege may apply the Money Laundering Reporting Officer must liaise with Legal Services to decide whether there are reasonable grounds for non-disclosure to the National Crime Agency. |
Where consent is required from the National Crime Agency for a transaction(s) to proceed, then the transaction(s) in question must not be undertaken or completed until either:
• National Crime Agency has specifically given consent; or
• There is deemed consent through the expiration of the relevant time limits without objection being receiving from the National Crime Agency. |
| 4. Customer Due Diligence |
| Customer due diligence is the identification and verification of the identity of a customer. It allows companies to be satisfied in regard to the identity of customers and clients and must take place at the time a business relationship is established. |
| This is required to allow for better identification of suspicious transactions. |
Due diligence needs to be conducted when:
• Establishing a business relationship
• Carrying out an occasional transaction (and linked transactions) which involves a payment equivalent to €15,000 (£12,000) or more.
• Money laundering or terrorist financing is suspected
• The adequacy of data, documents or information from previous relationships with customers is doubted. |
| 5. Risk Management |
| Customer due diligence must also be taken at times of a risk sensitive basis. The risk to the council of contravening the money laundering legislation will be assessed periodically in accordance with the Money Laundering Regulations and associated legislation. |
The regulations provide that the council:
• Determine the extent of customer due diligence measures on a risk sensitive basis depending on the type of client, business relationship or transaction.
• Be able to demonstrate to any supervisors that appropriate measures were taken in view of the risks of money laundering. |
| 6. Record Keeping Procedures |
| The Money Laundering Reporting Officer will keep a record of all reports received and any action taken / not taken to ensure an audit trail is maintained. |
| All information obtained for the purposes of money laundering checks and reports must be kept (for at least five years) and will be held and processed in compliance with relevant Data Protection legislation. |
| The precise nature of the records is not prescribed by law. However, they must be capable of providing an audit trail during any subsequent investigation, for example distinguishing the client and the relevant transaction and recording in what form any funds were received or paid. In practice, the councils business units will routinely make records of work carried out in the course of normal business and these should suffice in this regard. |
