Title: Ecuadorian Criminal Justice Agents Enhance Financial Crime Investigation Skills with ICAR Training 🇪🇸🇨🇱
Two-Week Workshops Boost Ecuadorian Agencies’ Capacity in Financial Crimes Investigation 💵💪
Quito, Ecuador - Over the past two weeks, 58 criminal justice officers from Ecuador completed intensive financial investigations and asset recovery workshops, led by the International Centre for Asset Recovery (ICAR) in collaboration with the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ecuador (FGE). Through these sessions, the capacity of Ecuadorian agencies was strengthened to investigate, prosecute, and recover assets related to corruption and money laundering cases.
Agencies Participated 🤝🔵
- Financial Intelligence Unit (UAFE)
- National Police 🚔
- Procuraduría General del Estado
- Judiciary
Collaboration and Learning 🌐💡
The diversity of agencies’ backgrounds offered a valuable opportunity for attendees to collaborate and learn from each other, solving a simulated corruption and money laundering case customized for the Ecuadorian context. They commented on the methods used as “beyond expectations,” adding that “the group work was excellent – dynamics were the best,” and that “we gained not only theoretical but practical knowledge” 📚💻. One officer shared, “These sessions are incredibly useful for our job performance.”
Local Regulations and Real-World Challenges ✅🧩
During the sessions, recent changes in Ecuador’s anti-money laundering and asset forfeiture legal framework were discussed, including the implementation of the new non-conviction-based forfeiture law, Extinción de dominio. This legislation aims to help recover stolen assets even when criminal convictions aren’t possible ⚖️. Additionally, attendees tackled the real-world challenges they encounter in applying these laws in practice.
Empowering Latin America with ICAR 🌍📊
ICAR Trainers Graduate 🎓💼
Five ICAR team members, based in Latin America, graduated from ICAR’s five-part train-the-trainer program during the workshops. Armed with the unique ICAR training methodology, they are now prepared to deliver the financial investigations and asset recovery training to partner agencies across the region 🌟.
ICAR’s Green Corruption team members will also be better-equipped to train Ecuadorian officers on following the money trail in the context of environmental crimes 🌱💸
Partnerships Fund Workshops 🤝💰
March 13-17 Session 🇬🇧
The UK’s Conflict, Stability and Security Fund contributed partially to the March 13-17 session as part of an ongoing Green Corruption project in Peru.
March 20-24 Session 🇺🇸
The March 20-24 session was partially funded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs through a grant to the Green Corruption program.