Police: Money laundering rife

 By PISAI GUMAR

POLITICIANS and bureaucrats have been siphoning public funds overseas over the years to be deposited in their banks, a conference has been told.

And concern has been raised that the extent of money laundering is setting the country at the edge of an “economic disaster” which will have a major impact on investment in the country.

This was revealed at a police commissioner’s conference at the PNG Forest Research Institute in Lae yesterday.

Director of the National Fraud and Anti-Corruption Division Chief Supt Mathew Damaru said the siphoning of public funds for personal gain had been rife over the years. 

However, Damaru said the police financial intelligent unit was unable to investigate.

“It requires in-depth investigations and perpetrators brought to justice while properties and assets be frozen,” Damaru said.

Australian Federal Police senior liaison officer Supt Steve Mullins said politicians and top bureaucrats had over the years been siphoning half a billion kina annually which were converted into dollars and invested in Australian banks annually.

They have been mapping money movement between PNG and Australia and found that transactions of large amounts were moved out from PNG annually.

He said responsible financial institutions especially the Internal Revenue Commission must be vigilant

Mullins said when such cases of mismanagement and corrupt practices were discovered, the visas of those responsible were cancelled.

Damaru said a review in April on money laundering and terrorism in the Asia-Pacific region made 49 recommendations on money laundering.

“If these recommendations were not fully executed, it threatens international financial institutions that will likely ignore investing in the country and PNG will head for economic disaster despite the LNG project,” Damaru said.

He said the government had been vocal about fighting corruption but did not provide adequate funding for the fraud and anti-corruption division.