Spain Probes Gibraltar Money Laundering Affair
A Gibraltar company has been reportedly used to disguise the real identity
of a Spanish businessman in a money laundering scam, according to Spanish anti-money
laundering agency, Sepblac. According to a report in the Gibraltar daily Panorama, nearly EUR20 million
(US$25.6 million) in suspicious transfers originating from Gibraltar have been
detected by Sepblac, part of Banco de Espana (the Bank of Spain), in connection
with an alleged stamp scandal which has led to the jailing of two Spaniards
while investigations are carried out. The anti-money laundering unit reportedly said the large sums of money received
in transfers from a "supposed philatelic company in Gibraltar" by
three stamp companies in Spain were "irregular." Sepblac also said
that the motive for using the Gibraltar company was to hide the identity of
its owner. The money received from Gibraltar was then transferred into offshore accounts
in Andorra and Switzerland, before being used in property transactions in Spain,
the report stated. Sepblac, (Servicio Ejecutivo de la Comisión de Prevención del
Blanqueo de Capitales e Infracciones Monetarias) was establised in 1993 as the
operating arm of the Commission for Monitoring Exchange Control Offences. Headed by the Secretary of State for Economy, Sepblac has become Spain's Financial
Intelligence Unit and plays an increasingly visible role in both national and
international activities intended to prevent and combat money laundering. .
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