A $15 Million Penalty for Laundering
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LEAD: In the first case involving laundering drug money brought by the United States against a large bank, a Federal judge in Tampa today ordered two subsidiaries of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International to forfeit $15 million, the largest penalty ever assessed against a bank. In the first case involving laundering drug money brought by the United States against a large bank, a Federal judge in Tampa today ordered two subsidiaries of the Bank of Credit and Commerce International to forfeit $15 million, the largest penalty ever assessed against a bank. Last month, on the eve of the trial, the two principal units of the $20 billion bank, which is based in Luxembourg, agreed to plead guilty to reduced charges of conspiracy and money laundering. Specifically, they admitted that bank officials had engaged in disguising transactions involving funds they knew were the proceeds of cocaine sales in the United States. The two subsidiaries are the Bank of Credit and Commerce International S.A., in Luxembourg, and the Bank of Credit and Commerce International (Overseas) Ltd., in Grand Cayman. The bank has offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Miami. The plea agreement with the Justice Department called for the bank to be placed on five years’ probation and to forfeit more than $14 million it had placed in an escrow account, an amount that with interest has since grown to just over $15 million. The case involves transactions from 1983 to 1988. More : query.nytimes.com |