ACC 446 FORENSIC ACCOUNTING
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CASE STUDY
Courtesy of the AMLFC Institute
On August 18, 2018, Darren JAMES, a former national of GDI Islands, who recently changed his name to Aalam Abdul AZEEZ, was intercepted and arrested by Scotland Yard, at the Heathrow International Airport, on suspicion of financing terrorism. Preliminary investigation conducted by Scotland Yard revealed that JAMES a/k/a AZEEZ is the Director and beneficial owner of DJ Imports/Exports S.A., a container shipping and management company registered in the GDI Islands, servicing clients in Africa and Europe for over 12 years.
JAMES is also the Director of New Beginnings Charity, a faith-based Non-Profit Organization that provides free medical and educational services to Syrian families displaced by the civil war. According to records obtained by Scotland Yard Intelligence Unit, New Beginnings Charity has been in existence for over eight (8) years. In addition to his listed involvements, JAMES is the co-owner of Seaview Transports & Employment Agency LLC. This company is jointly owned with Bradley FRANKLEN of the GDI Islands.
Further investigation revealed that on March 19, 2019 Aalam Abdul AZEEZ, Chairman of a Pluto Island based Platinum Bank, was arrested at Dulles International Airport, in Washington, D.C. The offences included AZEEZ’s alleged involvement in a scheme to evade economic sanctions issued by the United States against the GDI Islands, to defraud the U.S. Government, and to commit money laundering, terrorism financing and bank fraud. AZEEZ reportedly used a Platcove Island passport when he applied for his banking license in the island of Pluto.
It was Jerome & Partners, whose chairman Yara HADDAOUI, introduced Aalam Abdul AZEEZ to Pluto’s Prime Minister, Timothy HARDISH, at a meeting which eventually led to the setting up and licensing of Platinum Bank in Pluto. The Pluto Financial Services Authority has since launched an investigation into Platinum Bank, including an examination of whether the bank has been involved in any wrongdoing. Also, additional information obtained revealed that JAMES a/k/a AZEEZ is the son of the Deputy Political Leader of the People’s Progressive Party (PPP) of GDI Islands.
A few months earlier the U.S. Treasury warned of an observed trend where certain individuals were making applications and acquiring Platcove Island Economic Citizenship, seeking to engage in illicit financial activity using their new passports, including evasion of U.S. sanctions against the GDI Islands. The U.S. advisory “FIN-4456-9889 issued by the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in October 2017, which is still in full force, stated:
“While many countries offer programs similar to the Platcove Island citizen-by-investment program, the Guadeloupe program is attractive to illicit actors because the program, as administered, maintains lax controls as to who may be granted citizenship. While the Platcove government has publicly pledged to improve these controls, FinCEN believes that they remain ineffective.”
Aalam Abdul AZEEZ’s application was eventually approved by the Platcove authorities, a decision that is now being scrutinized closely. AZEEZ reportedly possesses four (4) passports issued by the Platcove government, which was facilitated under the Platcove Economic Citizenship Program by Jerome & Partners. His U.S. lawyers justified this by arguing that Aalam Abdul AZEEZ has multiple passports because he requested new ones when the pages of two (2) of the original passports became fully stamped. A third passport was almost full but had valid authorizations for the United Kingdom (UK), notwithstanding that Guadeloupe Island citizens, in any event, enjoy visa-free entry into the UK. All four passports were facilitated under the Platcove Island Economic Citizenship Program by Jerome & Partners.
The Pluto Financial Authorities seized the Platinum Bank and froze its accounts in March 2019, a few days after AZZEZ’s arrest was announced by the U.S. Department of Justice on a six-count indictment for allegedly participating in a scheme to illegally funnel $1,689 billion dollars in payments; totaling 34,598 transaction, were executed, from Porsotrea to GDI Islands individuals, in violation of U.S. sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering laws.
United State Department of Justice prosecutors allege that Aalam Abdul AZEEZ, his father and other associates evaded sanctions by obtaining Platcove Island passports, while declaring their residence in the GDI Islands. That they then used their Platcove passports to set up two companies in Turkey “Triple-A-Services, LLC” and Switzerland “Platinum Consulting S.A.” respectively, which collectively received $1,689 billion through their Boehm International Bank accounts between 2011 and 2013. These payments were cleared through U.S. banks and then transferred to Aalam Abdul AZEEZ’s Treasure Islands company, AdvanceTECH Ltd. Aalam Abdul AZEEZ has denied any wrongdoing. Platinum Bank’s financial information is reportedly now in the hands of FinCEN, and the European Banking Authority has also opened an inquiry into the bank’s activites.
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