Remittance company charged for not disclosing woman sent more than $26k overseas

A remittance company in Singapore was charged in court on Tuesday (Oct 25) for failing to file a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (CDSA).

Between Feb 26 and March 30 last year, the remittance company provided remittance services to a 53-year-old woman on three occasions, to remit a total sum of $26,658.70 overseas, said police.

Investigations revealed that the remittance company allegedly failed to disclose this to a Suspicious Transaction Reporting Officer as soon as it was reasonably practicable and that there were reasonable grounds to suspect that the money represented the proceeds of acquiring another person’s benefits of criminal conduct.

The woman was also charged for a money laundering offence.

The offence of failing to file a STR under Section 39(2) of the CDSA for individuals, carries a fine not exceeding $250,000, to an imprisonment term not exceeding three years; and if the person is not an individual, a fine not exceeding $500,000.

Police said: "The suspicious transaction reporting regime is a key pillar of Singapore’s anti-money laundering and counter financing of terrorism regime.

"The Singapore authorities take a serious view towards filing of such reports, and strongly urge reporting entities to continue their vigilance in detecting and reporting suspicious transactions."