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進入《TAIPEI TIMES》 Investigation of Prince Group case wins Egmont award
The winner of this year’s Best Egmont Case Award is announced on a display in Azerbaijan in an undated photograph. Photo courtesy of the Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau via CNA
GLOBAL RECOGNITION:The Prince case involved cross-border fraud and substantial illicit proceeds, winning a total of 76 out of 106 votes, the bureau said
By Yang Hsin-hui and Esme Yeh / Staff reporters
Taiwan’s investigation of the Prince Group （太子集團） money laundering case has won this year’s Best Egmont Case Award （BECA） — a prize honoring the world’s best investigations into money laundering and terrorism financing, the Investigation Bureau said yesterday.
The bureau’s Money Laundering Prevention Division had assisted the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office in seizing 11 luxury properties, 35 luxury cars and a total of US$175 million in illicit gains held across 337 bank accounts related to the Prince Group.
The Prince Group case was submitted to the Egmont Group’s BECA annual competition this year and secured 76 out of 106 votes from 130 international financial intelligence units and 15 international organizations, including the Financial Action Task Force and the World Bank, at the BECA annual conference in Azerbaijan, the bureau said in a statement.
To encourage members to enhance their financial intelligence operations and collaborate with authorities in combating money laundering and terrorist financing, the Egmont Group in 2011 began hosting the annual BECA competition, the bureau said.
The Prince Group case was chosen for the competition this year, as it involved cross-border fraud and substantial illicit proceeds, it said.
With the assistance of bureau Director-General Chen Pai-li （陳白立） and Taipei chief prosecutor Wang Chun-li （王俊力）, the division promptly prepared a video and a presentation on the case for the competition’s final round on Thursday, the bureau said.
The Prince Group case had won the most votes in the preliminary round, and entered the final round along with cyberfraud and cryptocurrency cases submitted by Financial Intelligence Unit-India, it said.
AMLD, Taiwan’s Prince Group case won the award with 76 out of 106 votes, the bureau said.
The award reflects international recognition of Taiwan’s accomplishments in financial intelligence analysis, criminal investigation and prosecution, and cross-border intelligence cooperation, it said.
The bureau said it would continue to bolster the operations of its financial intelligence unit, and step up cooperation with local anti-money laundering systems and international financial intelligence units to counter cross-border fraud and new forms of money laundering, such as virtual assets.
Established in Brussels in 1995, the Egmont Group is a leading international platform for anti-money laundering information exchange, consisting of financial intelligence units from across the world, with a membership of more than 180 institutions.
新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES
