The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency has partnered with the Anti-Money Laundering Council against suspected money launderers “who wash their illicit proceeds from illegal drug activities.”
Director General Aaron Aquino and AMLC Executive Director Mel Georgie Racela signed a memorandum of agreement to strengthen their partnership against the illegal drugs as well as terrorism.
Apart from financing terrorism, laundered money comes from the production and trafficking of dangerous drugs, he said.
Banks and other regulated entities have become conduits for laundering drug money, he added.
“Drug lords hide their profits to make it appear they were acquired through legitimate means. We need to track down their drug money trail and prevent them from using their affluence and influence to evade punishment,” he said.
Under the arrangement, both parties have expressed their desire to promote and encourage cooperation to effectively prevent, control, detect and investigate unlawful activities under Section 3 of the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
“The efforts and resources used by PDEA in tracking down and arresting illegal drug dealers and manufacturers will definitely go for naught if we cannot freeze the assets of these criminals while they are being prosecuted,” he said.
“We [just] cannot go on arresting and filing the cases while the drug lords are freely using drug money to buy their way out of prison,” he added.
Both parties vowed to cooperate in information exchange and capacity building measures, including the exchange of studies, researches, information on current, new and emerging trends and typologies in money laundering and terrorism financing, he said.
“PDEA may request for financial information to support an ongoing investigation to any violations of the anti-drug law. In return, AMLC may enlist the assistance of PDEA in the detection and investigation of money laundering activities and other violations of the AMLA,” he added.
In 2018 alone, PDEA’s anti-money laundering desk was able to refer 75 cases involving 102 targeted drug personalities and 64 others believed to be involved in illegal drug activities to AMLC for financial investigation.
From 2011 to 2018, AMLC had frozen P2.037 billion worth of assets, including local and foreign currencies, real estate, motor vehicles and firearms, from all drug cases.