In the previous topic we have given the money laundering definitions in the different countries. They consist of similar components and have the same purposes – to describe the wide circle of possible actions that one can intentionally perform, in order to hide the origin of assets, obtained by crime, and to be able to freely use them and sabotage the investigation of the initial crime, by which the assets were obtained.
However, the definitions are not the same. They use different terminology and some has wider impact than others. On one hand, there are some differences in the terminology for the subject of money laundering.
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- Directive (EU) 2015/849 of The European Parliament and of The Council:
Property (derived from criminal activity or from an act of participation in such an activity);
- German Criminal Code:
Object (derived from one of the unlawful acts);
- French Criminal Code:
Property or income, direct or indirect products of a felony or misdemeanor;
- Italian Criminal Code:
Money, goods or other things of value, deriving from an intentional crime;
- Financial Intelligence Unit for National Instant Criminal Background Check System, London:
Proceeds of crime;
- Austrian Criminal Code:
Assets that result from an act, threatened with more than a year in prison or an offense pursuant to specific crimes.
On the other hand, however, there are some differences in the terminology of acts, by which money laundering can be performed.
- Directive (EU) 2015/849 of The European Parliament and of The Council:
Intentional (and with knowledge that such property is derived from criminal activity or from an act of participation in such activity):
– conversion or transfer of property;
– concealment or disguise of the true nature, source, location, disposition, movement, rights with respect to, or ownership of, property;
– acquisition, possession or use of property;
– participation in, association to commit, attempts to commit and aiding, abetting, facilitating and counselling the commission of any of the actions referred above;
- German Criminal Code:
– hiding an object, concealing its origin, or obstructing or endangering the investigation of its origin;
- French Criminal Code:
– false justification of the origin of the property or income;
– assistance in investing, concealing or converting the direct or indirect products of a felony or misdemeanor;
- Italian Criminal Code:
– informed and intentional substitution or transfer, in such a way as to obstruct the identification of the criminal provenance;
- Financial Intelligence Unit for National Instant Criminal Background Check
System, London:
– trying to disguise the illegal origin of proceeds of crime;
- Austrian Criminal Code:
– concealing or hiding any part of assets that result from specific crime, veiling their origin.
