Title: $220 Million in Financial Crimes Uncovered: A Collaborative Effort by Fiji Intelligence Unit and Fiji Revenue and Customs Service

Staggering Detection of Financial Crimes in Fiji

In a significant achievement, the Fiji Intelligence Unit (FIU) reported an astounding sum of $220 million in financial crimes detected during the past year ¹. The FIU disseminated 317 intelligence case reports to various beneficiaries, with the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) being the largest recipient.

Major Contribution of FIU to FRCS Investigations

Unit Director Razim Buksh revealed that over 70% of the proactive whistle-blower reports benefited the FRCS, significantly contributing to the investigations of tax crimes, money laundering activities, and other financial and fraudulent offenses ².

Impact of FIU’s Intelligence on FRCS Investigations

1,279 individuals and businesses were investigated by the FRCS as a result of the intelligence provided by the FIU in 2017 ³. The CEO of Fiji Revenue and Customs Service, Visvanath Das, acknowledged the importance of the unit’s referral reports in uncovering fraudulent acts where businesses failed to pay their fair share of taxes ³.

Tax Collections and Collaboration between the Agencies

The collaboration enabled the Revenue and Customs Service to collect a total of $6.6 million in taxes and penalties in 2017 ³. Two Revenue and Customs Service officers were stationed at the Fiji Intelligence Unit on a full-time secondment ².

Strategies for Enhancing Collaboration and Fighting Financial Crimes

Recently, Das and Buksh met to discuss collaboration strategies and networking opportunities between the two agencies ². They focused on increasing profiling efforts of suspected tax evaders, inspecting trade-based money laundering, and investigating related financial crimes.

Addressing the Challenge of Improving Tax Compliance Culture in Fiji

Both agencies concurred that while the overall tax compliance culture in Fiji has been improving, they plan to intensify their efforts against dishonest individuals and businesses that violate their tax obligations ².