Trafficking in Human Beings and Migrant Smuggling Pose Medium Risk to Montserrat
A recent assessment has identified human trafficking and migrant smuggling as a moderate risk to the island nation of Montserrat. While instances of these crimes are limited, the context of the jurisdiction’s vulnerability to money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF) remains a concern.
Tax Crimes: A Growing Concern
Montserrat is also grappling with tax crimes, including tax evasion and fraud. With nine pending cases related to tax offenses, the assessment team has assigned a medium ML threat rating. To address these concerns, Montserrat has strengthened its anti-money laundering/counter-terrorism financing (AML/CFT) framework and recruited new tax experts.
Drug Trafficking: A Relatively Small but Growing Problem
During the five-year period reviewed, cannabis was the primary drug smuggled into Montserrat. While the island’s strict AML/CFT legislation provides protection against this crime, infrequent occurrences and relatively small quantities seized have determined a medium ML threat rating.
National Risk Assessment
The assessment team has identified several vulnerabilities in Montserrat’s AML/CFT systems, including:
- Quality and Accessibility of Intelligence Gathering and Processing: The jurisdiction’s data collection methods, intelligence gathering, processing, and distribution mechanisms require improvement.
- Quality of National AML/CFT Policy and Strategy: The absence of an approved national AML/CFT strategy hinders the government’s efforts to combat ML and TF.
- Capacity and Resources of Investigation and Financial Crime Prosecutions: While the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) has received training in prosecuting ML/Tf cases, it requires increased human resources to ensure timely processing.
Sector Assessment
The assessment team has identified several sectors most susceptible to money laundering:
- Credit Union
- Money Service Business
- Domestic Bank
- Real Estate
- Legal Professionals
Key findings indicate that the credit union and money service businesses are at medium risk of ML, while the domestic bank and real estate sector are considered low-risk.
Recommendations
To mitigate these risks, Montserrat is advised to:
- Strengthen its AML/CFT framework
- Improve intelligence gathering and sharing mechanisms
- Develop a national AML/CFT strategy
- Increase human resources for investigation and financial crime prosecution
By addressing these vulnerabilities, Montserrat can better protect itself against trafficking in human beings, migrant smuggling, and other financial crimes.