Black Immigrant Daily News
The Financial Investigations Division’s (FID) biennial conference – a joint initiative of the FID and the UK government – is being hailed as a huge success.
Staged February 1 to 2, 2023 under the theme: “Widening the use of the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) Through Collaboration”, the two-day conference brought together a wide range of the FID’s stakeholders to include law enforcement, regulatory, compliance, financial entities, and legal professionals participating in 17 plenary sessions and discussions.
The FID’s Chief Technical Director, Selvin Hay, opened the event by noting that the theme is most timely given recent local events and stressed the importance of a collaborative approach to deter, charge and prosecute financial crimes.
“This conference is a key part of a strategy that we have put in place to combat and prevent financial crimes in their various forms. Bringing together investigative and prosecutorial entities, regulators, competent authorities, designated non-financial institutions, and the public, under a unifying theme such as this, provides an ideal means to exchange ideas and glean learnings that should be applied and discharged in the execution of our duties,” Hay said.
The use of POCA by law enforcement entities has been sporadic to date. This conference will help galvanize its practical implementation to ensure the effective execution of POCA, he said.
In addressing the conference, Finance Minister Nigel Clarke reinforced the importance of Jamaica’s progress with its anti-money laundering and counter-financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) framework as it serves the citizenry’s collective interest.
He argued that Jamaicans will suffer if the country does not prioritize the strengthening of Jamaica’s AML/CFT regime. “In 2017, Jamaica was compliant/largely compliant in 22 of the 40 FATF recommendations, and from the latest review, Jamaica is compliant/largely compliant with 33 of the 40 recommendations which represents some amount of progress,” said Dr Clarke, adding that, “It is in our interest to do everything we can do to strengthen Jamaica’s AML and CFT regime and you have a commitment from the Government of Jamaica (GOJ) to work rigorously in that regard to ensure that we achieve these objectives.”
The positions presented by Hay and Clarke were supported by keynote speaker Professor Shazeeda Ali whose research-based presentation illustrated the efficacy of greater collaboration among agencies in successfully combating financial crimes.
Professor Ali, the Dean, Professor of Corporate and Financial Law at the UWI shared her research findings from across the globe highlighting best practices from countries that have engaged various combinations of partnerships across/among public and private entities. These partnerships facilitated the exchange and analysis of intelligence, training, and technology, among others, to pool resources in detecting, preventing, and combatting financial crimes.
“By changing mindsets and fostering meaningful partnerships and other collaborative efforts, this helps to break the ‘silo’ mentality. It allows every individual and each sector in the society to accept their role and responsibility in the common pursuit to combat financial crime,” posited Professor Ali.
Meanwhile, Minister of National Security Dr Horace Chang noted that despite the FID’s significant successes, the complexity of financial crimes presents challenges to charging and prosecuting perpetrators. “I hope that this discussion can assist in leading and setting the framework for effective investigations of these [complex] activities. Let me again commend all the stakeholders for organizing such a critical conference, especially at a time when we are not only seeking to widen the use of POCA to improve collaboration but to further strengthen international cooperation, bearing in mind that the US dollar is still the currency of choice for criminals globally and in Jamaica. It means we have to work with our partners across the globe including major criminal organizations and international organizations” asserted Dr Chang.
Acting British High Commissioner, Daniel Shepherd, reiterated the UK government’s commitment to supporting Jamaica and the work of the FID in its fight against crime.
He said, “For the last two decades, the UK has worked in partnership with Jamaica to address the full range of issues related to crime and violence…A key part has been supporting the development, evolution, and strengthening of critical law enforcement agencies. Most recently, through the Serious Organized Crime and Anticorruption Programme (SOCAP) – there’s an approximately J$2 billion investment over 5 years, from April 2020 through to March 2025.”
Over the past three years, the FID has strengthened its partnerships with law enforcement and anti-corruption agencies to intensify the country’s scope in conducting more comprehensive financial investigations. This strategic thrust included the signing of the Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with entities such as the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), the Major Organised Crime & Anti-Corruption Agency (MOCA), the Jamaica Customs Agency, and the Integrity Commission. Other elements in this thrust include intelligence sharing, training, and joint investigations.
The conference which was held at the Jamaica Pegasus is slated to be staged next in 2025.
NewsAmericasNow.com
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