Egypt's Ministry of Interior announced arresting seven individuals for “drug trafficking, and their attempt to launder the funds of their criminal activity," by pumping about EGP750 million in attempts to conceal their origin.
The “Anti-drug and Organized Crime” unit said that one of the cells consists of seven members, residing in Asyut, who dealt and promoted drugs to their clients, earning large sums of money.
According to the Egyptian official statement, the accused tried to launder the money obtained through illegal activities with the aim of injecting them into the economic and legal businesses, through withdrawing and depositing those amounts in various banks.
The defendants also tried to establish commercial activities in different places through real estate offices to trade building materials, as well as selling and purchasing land, real estate, and cars. Their plan was to conceal the source of the funds and legitimize their origin through legal entities.
Last March, the parliament, chaired by Speaker Ali Abdel Aal, approved a draft law submitted by the government to amend some provisions of anti-money laundering law.
The bill comes within a framework of Egypt's membership in the Middle East and North Africa Financial Action Task Force (MENAFATF).
The amendment in its first article included the definition of funds to include all physical and virtual assets, economic resources, including oil and other natural resources, and property, regardless of how it was obtained, value, and type.
The amendment came to stiffen penalties imposed in case of money laundering, including imprisonment for a period not exceeding seven years and a fine equivalent to twice the money included in the crime. It asserted that such punishments will be enforced on whoever commits or attempts to commit the crime of money laundering.
