Financial Crime World

Grenada Falls Short in Forfeiture of Criminal Assets

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A recent assessment has revealed that Grenada is failing to adequately forfeit assets linked to drug trafficking and other serious crimes, allowing criminals to retain ill-gotten gains.

Failure to Forfeit Assets

  • There have been no subsequent Money Laundering (ML) investigations conducted in relation to drug trafficking matters.
  • Despite the forfeiture of instrumentalities such as vessels and motor vehicles, no further action was taken.
  • A single civil recovery matter began in 2016 but remained unresolved at the time of the assessment.

Weaknesses in Proceeds of Crime Act

  • Grenada has not utilized the full extent of its Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) law to deprive criminals of their criminal assets.
  • No confiscation of falsely or undeclared cross-border movement of currency or bulk cash transactions has taken place.

Terrorist Financing Concerns

Lack of Specialized Training

  • Grenada lacks specialized training for potential analysis and investigations of terrorist financing (TF) cases.
  • This vulnerability may be exploited by terrorists.

Comprehensiveness in Assessing Risk to TF

  • While the country has designated a TF desk at Special Branch, it is unclear whether this desk is adequately equipped to assess the risk to TF.

Lack of Mechanisms for Identifying and Proposing Targets for Designations

  • Grenada lacks mechanisms to identify and propose targets for designations under United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs) 1267, its successor resolutions, and UNSCR 1373.
  • Its legislation does not provide for the freezing of assets without delay.

Non-Profit Organizations at Risk

Lack of Risk-Based Supervision

  • Non-profit organizations (NPOs) are required to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) and the Anti-Money Laundering/CCountering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Commission, but a risk-based supervisory approach has not been adopted or implemented.
  • As a result, NPOs may be misused for TF criminality without adequate oversight.

Proliferation Financing Concerns

Lack of Laws and Measures

  • Grenada does not have any laws or measures in place to address proliferation financing (PF).
  • While some Financial Institutions (FIs) and Designated Non-Financial Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs) are aware of the international obligation, there is no implementation of TF measures concerning PF.

Preventive Measures

Varying Levels of Understanding among FIs

  • While some FIs have demonstrated a better understanding of their AML/CFT legal obligations, there are varying levels of understanding among other FIs.
  • The DNFBP sector lacks consistent and enforceable AML/CFT measures, relying instead on long-standing relationships rather than customer profiling.

Overall, the report highlights significant weaknesses in Grenada’s efforts to combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing, leaving the country vulnerable to criminal activity.