Cambodia continues its crackdown on gambling-related crime, including money laundering, in an effort to be removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) money laundering “gray list.”
But law enforcement in the kingdom still has a lot of work to do, says Pech Pisey, executive director of Transparency International Cambodia (TI Cambodia).
Cambodia remains on the list of jurisdictions that require “increased monitoring” to overcome “strategic deficiencies” in its anti-money laundering measures. As Pisey told the Phnom Penh Post, “The positive progress is the result of introducing legal principles, creating a general department that is leading the fight against money laundering, and the establishment of new international and regional cooperation combating money laundering.
“Recently there was the establishment of an inter-ministerial committee to combat money laundering led by the Ministry of Justice, and the Anti-Corruption Unit has recently provided training on investigations to the tax general department.”
He added, “Although we have legal principles, the implementation of the law is still limited as the investigations, arrests and punishment of suspects is still weak. Another weakness is the sharing of secret information related to these crimes with other countries. Generally, we need international cooperation and our Cambodian officials’ capacity is still limited.”
Cambodian gaming has come under increasing scrutiny for crimes related to the industry. In response to multiple reports of human trafficking, Prime Minister Hun Sen recently launched a crackdown on the underground industry, and the Commercial Gambling Management Commission has issued new and stricter guidelines for legal casinos in the kingdom.
“High-risk areas for money laundering include gambling, casinos, real estate and shadow investments which are not properly registered,” said Pisey.
