Title: FinCEN Imposes Record $75 Million Penalty on Tinian Dynasty Hotel & Casino for Bank Secrecy Act Violations
June 3, 2023, Washington D.C.
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) announced its largest ever penalty against a casino for Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) violations. Hong Kong Entertainment (Overseas) Investments, Ltd., doing business as Tinian Dynasty Hotel & Casino (Tinian), in the Northern Mariana Islands, was penalized $75 million for willful and egregious BSA lapses.
BSA Violations & Failure to Establish AML Program (2008 - Present)
From 2008 to present, Tinian disregarded the regulatory requirements to create and maintain a BSA/Anti-Money Laundering (AML) compliance program, neglecting to implement any of the four primary pillars. This neglect led to several serious infringements.
Overlooking Critical Compliance Obligations
- Failure to File Currency Transaction Reports: Tinian intentionally disregarded filing CTRs for undercover Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) agents posing as Russian businessmen.
Encouraging Unreported Transactions
- Advice to Evade Reporting Requirements: A casino manager advised these undercover agents on tactics to bypass reporting requirements.
FinCEN’s Response & director’s Remarks
In response to these revelations, FinCEN Director Jennifer Shasky Calvery commented, “Tinian’s actions jeopardized the financial integrity of the region and the U.S. financial system.”
Emphasizing Casino’s Role & Importance of AML Compliance (2014)
In a previous statement made in 2014, Shasky Calvery underscored casinos’ important role in upholding AML obligations. She emphasized the significance of fostering a robust culture of compliance and stressed the value of the information casinos provide to the government.
- Informative Nature of CTR & SAR filings: Filing Currency Transaction Reports (CTRs) and Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) is critical as this information is used to combat various criminal activities, including drug trafficking and terrorism-related offenses.
Previous Criminal Proceedings
This action by FinCEN against Tinian follows an April 2013 criminal complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands against Tinian, its Casino Manager, and its VIP Services Manager. The complaint also accused Tinian of allowing gamblers to carry out transactions surpassing $10,000 without submitting CTRs. The criminal proceeding is ongoing, as the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands recently refused to dismiss the case due to lack of jurisdiction.
No Individuals Sanctioned
In their June 3 assessment, FinCEN did not sanction any individuals as part of the penalty imposed against Tinian.