Senate Passes Money Laundering Prohibition Bill

T he Senate has passed the Money Laundering Prohibition Bill 2011.

The Bill seeks to punish those who participate in organised criminal groups and racketeering terrorism, terrorist financing and trafficking in human beings and migrants smuggling.

Other aspects of the bill outline punishments for tax evasion, sexual exploitation and illicit arms trafficking, bribery and corruption, counterfeiting currency, counterfeiting and piracy of products, environmental crimes, murder and grievous body injury.

Prescribed punishments

The bill prescribes that offenders are likely to pay fines, raging from one million Naira for individuals and corporate bodies to, one year and 25 years imprisonment for the individual or corporate entity.

Clauses

The Senate in consideration of the Bill, however, expunged the clause that seeks to empower security agencies to tap into the telephone of any suspect or place such suspect under surveillance.

The senate, however, retained the clause that gives security agencies power to obtain access to any suspected computer system.

Strengthening financial system

The Senate repealed the money laundering act 2004 and re-enacted the Money Laundering Prohibition Bill 2011.

Senate President David Mark said that the bill would strengthen the financial system as well as afford all relevant agencies the powers to adequately deal with offenders.

NAN/Williams/Yinka