The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network today issued an advisory urging financial institutions to be vigilant for suspicious activity related to Chinese money laundering networks used by Mexican drug cartels.
According to FinCEN, the Chinese networks are considered professional money launderers “and play a vital role in laundering the cartels’ drug proceeds in the United States.” The advisory provides financial typologies associated with the networks. It also lists several red flags to help identify money mules used by the networks, such as a customer presenting a Chinese passport and a visa with the same photograph despite being issued years apart, or Chinese customers who report low-income occupations but have unexplained wealth.
