The Inter-American Development Bank and the Organization of American States’ Inter-American Comission for Control of Drug Abuse (OAS-CICAD) today announced the signing of an agreement to train judges and prosecutors in cases of asset laundering in Latin American Southern Cone countries and Mexico.
The agreement was signed by the manager of the IDB Integration and Regional Programs Department, Nohra Rey de Marulanda, and the Executive Secretary of OAS-CICAD James Mack. The organizations agreed that CICAD will conduct a project of mock trials on money laundering cases.
The IDB has previously financed technical cooperation operations on this subject in other areas of Latin America, but this is the first one for Southern Cone countries. CICAD’s Asset Anti-Laundering Unit will be in charge of the project, that has also support from OAS and the United Nations Legal Assistance Program for Latin America and the Caribbean
Mock trials will take place in Argentina, Bolivia, Brasil, Chile, México and Paraguay, beginning in Chile in November of this year. Each exercise will have at least 15 judicial officials (in the roles of judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys) and up to 15 police, financial intelligence units and banking superintendencies officers will attend as witnesses.
The main objective of a mock trial is to practice the processing of an asset laundering case. The project will also include a theoretical component presented by international experts and development of a research plan for prosecutors to design a strategy for the case.
CICAD, through its Legal Development and Asset Anti-Laundering units has participated in these types of workshops since 2003 by special invitation of the United Nations Office against Drugs and Crime.