Legislators from the opposition told reporters on 24 May 2017 that the sports betting shops and lottery sales agencies are a fertile ground for money laundering activities because they handle lots of cash that is not regulated by the state. The Chamber of Deputies had passed the Anti-Money Laundering/ Combating the Financing of Terrorism Bill that would be amended in the Senate to exclude betting shops. The bill would replace Law 72-02 on money laundering from drug trafficking operations.
According to Augustine Burgos, legislator for the Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM) from La Vega, Congress would commit a serious mistake if it removes these agencies from the new scrutiny to be provided under the Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism Bill (Ley de Lavado de Activos y Financiamiento al Terrorismo). The Senate amended the bill that had passed in the Chamber of Deputies to exclude the betting shops and gaming operations, with the exception of casinos.
Burgos said that his fellow deputies have the mission of not allowing legislators who are owners of sports betting parlors to impose their criteria when the Chamber of Deputies takes the proposal under consideration. He says he does not understand why the authorities have not wanted to regulate the sports betting business. “There are hundreds of thousands [of these betting shops that are operating illegally,” he observed. He feels these operations facilitate the laundering of money.
The bill now returns to the Chamber of Deputies where legislators need to approve or disapprove the amendments made in the Senate prior to sending it to the Presidency. The bill was sent to the Chamber of Deputies’ Justice Commission that is expected to render a report in a week’s time.
In the Presidency, Presidency Minister Gustavo Montalvo defended the amendments made by the senators to the bill. The bill seeks to align the local money laundering regulations with global recommendations made by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF-GAFI).
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El Nacional
25 May 2017
