£90m in `suspicious transactions' reported to Garda by institutions

More than 830 "suspicious transactions" involving a total of £90 million have been reported to i the Garda by financial institutions this year, three times the amount reported last year.

It is believed that £12.5 million of the total resulted from transactions reported by a single Irish financial institution. A further £6 million, believed to have been defrauded in Australia, was lodged to an Irish bank account for a number of days and then transferred to the Caribbean.

"There has a been substantial increase in reports this year," the head of the Garda Bureau of Fraud Investigation (GBFI), Chief Supt Frank Glacken, said yesterday. "And there has been a corresponding rise in amounts involved," he told delegates at a European conference on money-laundering, organised by the GBFI.

Chief Supt Glacken said last month that some financial institutions were selective in the way they interpreted the Criminal Justice Act 1994, which required them to report suspicious activity.

A "suspicious transaction" is defined as any unusual activity in an account, such as a large influx of money, or one in which there are questions about the identity of the customer who may be opening an account.

It is believed that some of the £90 million in transactions were found to be legitimate transactions. According to reliable sources, one large lodgment turned out to be an inheritance. In another instance a bank reported a Lotto winner after she lodged the winnings to her account.

Chief Supt Glacken said the increase in the number and size of reported transactions could have been down to "considerable media attention". It is believed that the bureau received 82 reports in one day from one financial institution during recent media coverage of a banking scandal.

The obligation to report what the institutions consider to be suspicious transactions involved a "major cultural change" for institutions, he said.

Those obliged to report such transactions include banks, building societies, credit unions, the post office and stockbrokers. The Government is committed to obliging solicitors, accountants and estate agents to report suspicious transactions. This could result in a huge rise in the number of reports next year.

Each financial institution designates a reporting officer, who fills out a written report. "Individual staff members do not make reports, and a standard report form is used," Chief Supt Glacken explained. In 1995, the year institutions were obliged to comply with the Act, 199 suspicious transactions were reported, totalling £17.7 million. The following year 378 involving £22.1 million were reported and last year's total of 504 reports related to £30.1 million.

When the GBFI receives a report, the person is checked against criminal records and intelligence files. "Should a subject have come to police attention before, obviously the ensuing investigation can progress along certain lines. On the other hand, if the preliminary inquiries do not reveal a link to criminality a protracted and difficult investigation can ensue. Despite our best efforts we may not be able to achieve the result we desire. However, the positive fallout from these investigations is increased intelligence."

Since 1994, when money-laundering became an offence, 16 people have been charged, he said. Seven of these have been convicted, one case was withdrawn and the rest are pending.