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Workshop "Combating money laundering through commercial transactions in Central America and the Caribbean" in Guatemala

Guatemala, January 27, 2022. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), through the Global Program against Money Laundering, proceeds of crime and terrorist financing (GPML), conducted the workshop "Combating money laundering through commercial operations in Central America and the Caribbean".

The objective of this training is to raise awareness of the threats to public security arising from money laundering through trade operations, as well as to strengthen the capacities of law enforcement and prosecutorial authorities to detect, investigate and prosecute money laundering through trade in a much more effective manner.

The workshop was attended by law enforcement and judicial authorities responsible for the identification, intelligence gathering, investigation and prosecution of money laundering.

Other indirect beneficiaries of this workshop include senior management and policy makers in affected countries, as well as the private sector involved in international trade and compliance.

Money laundering continues to be a serious global challenge. While certain irregularities and loopholes are being addressed and corrected, new ones are emerging.

Increasing volumes of global trade are a tempting environment for transnational organized crime groups as well as terrorist organizations. Transnational organized crime groups (OCGs) engage in countless illegal activities to maximize their profits, including involvement in arms and narcotics trafficking, smuggling, customs fraud, embezzlement, IPR fraud, as well as other criminal activities.

In order to profit from and retain their criminal business, OCGs launder the proceeds generated by their criminal activities.

Such laundering is generated by combining their illicit profits and shipments from trading operations into legitimate business and financial systems.

The greater the volume of trade, the greater the challenge for law enforcement and criminal justice authorities to detect and investigate illicit shipments and financial flows.