On May 4, 2011 the Lower House gave preliminary approval to the bill which provides for the crime of money laundering to be autonomously established in the National Criminal Code (“Bill”). The Bill is part of set of rules issued by the national government to avoid sanctions from the Financial Action Task Force (“FATF”).
The Bill incorporates a new title to the National Criminal Code denominated “Crimes against the Economic and Financial Order”. Such title provides in its first article that will be punished with three (3) to ten (10) years of imprisonment and a fine of two (2) to ten (10) times the amount of the transaction, the person who turns, transfers, administers, sells, tax, or through any kind of operation puts in circulation in the market, goods with illegal origins, with the possible consequence it acquires the appearance of having a legal origin, when its value exceeds the sum of three hundred thousand pesos (AR$ 300,000). If it not exceeds such amount, the offender shall be punished by imprisonment of six (6) months to three (3) years.
Regarding the penalty, the maximum shall be increased in one third, and the minimum shall be increased in a half when:
(i) The author carries out habitually the activity, or he is part of an association for that purpose.
(ii) The author is a public servant who committed the offense in the exercise of his functions. Additionally, he shall suffer the penalty of disqualification during three (3) to ten (10) years.
If these acts were carried out on behalf of a legal person the following sanctions, among others, may also be applied: (i) a fine of two (2) to ten (10) times the value of the goods subject of the crime, (ii) partial or full suspension of activities by no more than ten (10) years, and (iii) loss or suspension of state benefits.
Regarding money laundering operations, goods will be confiscated without criminal conviction when, being able to check their illicit origin, the defendant cannot be prosecuted because of his death, jailbreak, or any reason that cause the termination of the criminal action, or when the accused has acknowledged the illegal source or unlawful use of the property.
The Bill also states that the Financial Information Unit (“FIU”) will have autonomy and financial autarky, while the previous regime only gave this Unit functional autarky.
Additionally, the Bill explicitly extends the offenses for which the FIU is responsible for the analysis and transmission of information, adding drug smuggling, extortion, crimes under the scope of the Criminal Tax Regime, and trafficking.
Another important amendment introduced by the Bill is the extension of the powers of the Executive over the FIU, since it may remove the President or Vice President of this Unit when they incurred in poor performance of their duties, gross negligence, when proved convicted for committing willful crimes or physical or mental disability.
Additionally, the following persons are added as those required to inform the FIU of any operation suspicious of money laundering or financing of terrorism:
(i) Registries of all kinds of vessels and aircrafts.
(ii) Mutual and cooperative associations.
(iii) Natural or legal persons whose usual activity is the sale of automobiles, agricultural and road machinery, ships, yachts and similar aircrafts.
(iv) Legal persons that perform functions of organization and regulation of professional sports.
(v) Licensed professionals whose activities are regulated by Professional Councils in Economic Sciences, even when acting in defense at trial.
The Bill provides for the expiration after five (5) years of the action to implement the fine to the person who fails to comply with the obligation to inform the FIU. Such fine is of one (1) to ten (10) times the total value of the transaction. The execution of the fine also prescribes in the same period, and such period shall start from the act which establishes the fine.
The Senate is expected to ap
prove the Bill on June the 1st, so that Argentina counts with the new regulation at the next meeting of the FATF, to be held on June 20 in Mexico.
