On July 10, 2020, Mrs. Justice Johannah Cutts DBE upheld a disclosure order sent to a Brazilian businessman allegedly using “corrupt funds” connected to the multibillion dollar Petrobras “Operation Carwash” money laundering scandal.[1]

                Julio Faerman worked for the Dutch oil and gas services company SMB Offshore. He pled guilty to bribery in Brazil. He concluded a cooperation agreement with the prosecuting authorities after he paid them $54 million. Before that, the Brazilian authorities requested the assistance of the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) in the recovery and identity of Faerman’s assets in the U.K. The request was withdrawn after the agreement.

                In June 2015, the SFO started its own civil recovery investigation. It focused primarily on the property at 8 Tasker Lodge in London. The SFO claims that the funds used to buy the property were linked to corrupt funds obtained by Mr. Faerman during his work as an agent for a Dutch company to enable it to further its business in Brazil with Petrobras, the Brazilian national oil and gas company. The SFO believes that some offshore accounts received a portion of the proceeds of Faerman’s criminal activities.

                In January 2019, the SFO applied to the High Court for a Property Freezing Order and Disclosure Order. The latter was likely intended to enable the SFO to obtain information that would identify the ultimate source of the funds used to purchase 8 Tasker Lodge and determine whether the funds could be traced to the known repositories of the proceeds of Faerman’s unlawful conduct. 

                When the first Disclosure Order was issued on January 29, 2019, the SFO did not bring to the court’s attention the Perry case, which precludes a notice of criminal penalties to Faerman for non-compliance, insofar as Faerman is outside the U.K.

                Eventually on November 5, 2019, the SFO wrote to Faerman’s solicitors admitting they could not force compliance with the Information Notice, which was why they had removed the penal notice. They said that they were requesting the information on a voluntary basis.

                Subsequently, the SFO agreed to withdraw the Information Notice and to write a letter to Faerman in its place, requesting the information sought on a voluntary basis. Faerman did not provide the information on request.

                Justice Cutts refused to discharge the disclosure order. She determined that the SFO did not act in bad faith, and Faerman has not suffered prejudice. Likewise, she stated that a clear and compelling public interest exists in maintaining the disclosure order.  She pointed out that Faerman does not challenge the merits of the SFO’s suspicion concerning the legality of the funds used to buy the property.  Hence, the disclosure order is valid.

                As a result of the order, the SFO is able to seize the Kensington property linked to Faerman, and Faerman will have to comply.  Although the order concerns a procedural matter over the extraterritorial application of the disclosure order and notice required, the SFO can continue to pursue Faerman for the information it seeks with respect to its efforts to ascertain whether proceeds of crime were used to buy the luxury London apartment.

On April 22, 2020, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) found the United States responsible for violating the human rights of Djamel Ameziane, a former detainee at the Guantánamo Bay detention facility.[1]

            In the past, it has been notoriously difficult for foreign tax authorities to go directly after U.S. persons who are or were involved in fraudulent tax schemes. These lawsuits often fail on jurisdictional grounds, as the people involved and the evidence needed to substantiate a claim are sheltered behind offshore intermediaries. In a major ongoing lawsuit, this veil may now be lifted as a federal judge in New York has agreed to issue letters rogatory seeking evidence and testimony from offshore entities allegedly involved in the scheme.

On June 9, 2020, Sudanese Militia leader Ali Abd Al-Rahman, also known as Ali Kousayb, surrendered himself to International Crime Court (ICC) authorities. The event occurred thirteen years after the warrant for his arrest was first issued, on April 27, 2007. Koushayb’s alleged crimes occurred between 2003 and 2004 during the Darfur conflict as part of his involvement in the counter-insurgency efforts of the Sudanese government. Koushayb’s trial will be the first ever trial held for crimes committed during this conflict. [1]

On July 24, 2020, Malaysia and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. concluded a settlement agreement to resolve the criminal investigation by Malaysia into Goldman Sach’s role in diverting money from 1MDB. The settlement requires Goldman Sachs to pay $3.9 billion.[1]

In June 2020, the Counter-Terrorism Committee Executive Directorate (CTED) released its report on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on terrorism and counter-terrorism.[1]

On July 15, 2020, President Donald J. Trump and Attorney General William P. Barr announced several indictments related to Joint Task Force Vulcan (JTFV), an initiative started in August 2019 aimed at disrupting, dismantling, and ultimately destroying MS-13.[1]

                On July 15, 2020, the United States Department of Justice brought a civil forfeiture complaint,[1] demanding the forfeiture of a mansion in Potomac, Maryland on the outskirts of Washington, D.C. Yahya Jammeh, the former president of The Gambia, acquired the property with approximately $3.5 million in corruption proceeds through a trust established by his wife Zineb Jammeh.[2]

On July 17, 2020, European Union High Representative/Vice-President Josep Borrell made a statement on United States sanctions.[1] The sharp criticism is the latest shot across the bow of U.S. unilateral sanctions.

On July 16, 2020, Essentra FZE Company Limited (Essentra FZE), a global supplier of cigarette products, which is incorporated in the United Arab Emirates, entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and defrauding the United States in connection with evading sanctions on North Korea.[1]