If you’ve got inside information about dirty money flowing into real estate, luxury cars, horse racing or the construction industry, government officials in British Columbia want to hear about it.
The B.C. government has launched an anonymous tip portal as it gears up for the next phase of its investigation into money laundering in the province.
This new tip portal comes after the June release of a report by former high-ranking Mountie Peter German regarding money laundering in B.C.’s casinos.
That report highlighted the potential for dirty money to flow through other key sectors of the economy, and in September, B.C. launched two new probes into money laundering.
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One of those probes investigating illegal activity is headed by German on behalf of the Ministry of the Attorney General.
The investigation is now looking for information or suspicions of illegal activity in several specific areas:
- Links between organized crime and money laundering and luxury cars or horse racing
- Criminal activity and money laundering in the real estate market
- The use of lawyers’ trust accounts to hide real estate transactions
- Money laundering in the construction industry
- Any other links between organized crime and real estate transactions
German has been directed to report back to provincial officials on the nature, history and extent of money laundering found in any of these areas.
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Tipsters can report money laundering concerns or information through the new online portal until Jan. 31, 2019.
German’s review is separate from a second probe led by former deputy attorney general Maureen Maloney under the Ministry of Finance, which is focusing on legislative and regulatory changes that could be made to prevent money laundering.
Both reports from are due in March 2019.