Another Money Exchange Connected to FARC Terrorism
The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated another Colombian money exchange house for acting on behalf of and materially assisting the narcotics trafficking activities of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, a narco-terrorist group also known as the FARC. This is OFAC's fourth action against the FARC in the past six months. Previous actions are mentioned in Targeting the FARC Terrorist Financial Network.
Designating the Mercurio Internacional S.A., a Colombian money exchange house headquartered in Bogota, Colombia, with several branches throughout Colombia, helps curb the flow of money to the FARC. The FARC used this Colombian money exchange house a.k.a. "casa de cambio" to launder narcotics proceeds from its Eastern Bloc and the 27th Front. Information on the 27th Front and their commander can be found in Targeting the FARC Terrorist Financial Network. The FARC money laundering operation starts when it sells its illicit foreign currency to domestic money exchange businesses which then sell the foreign currency to bank-like institutions that can export the foreign currency from Colombia. An example of this type of exchange occurs when the Cambios El Trebol, a professional del cambio (also on the OFAC list) a customer of Mercurio Internacional would sell the FARC's illicit foreign currency to Mercurio Internacional in return for Colombian pesos.
The FARC was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the Secretary of State in 1997. Additionally in 2003, President George W. Bush identified the FARC as a significant foreign narcotics trafficker pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act.
The designation of the Mercurio Internacional freezes any assets which may come under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibits U.S. persons from conducting financial or commercial transactions with this entity. Penalties for violations of the Kingpin Act include civil penalties of up to $1,075,000 per violation. Criminal penalties for corporate officers may include up to 30 years in prison and fines of up to $5,000,000. Criminal fines for corporations may reach $10,000,000. Other individuals face up to 10 years in prison for criminal violations of the Kingpin Act and fines pursuant to Title 18 of the United States Code.
Below is the specific listing regarding the recently added to Columbian Money Exchange:
MERCURIO INTERNACIONAL S.A., Transversal 71D No. 26-94 Sur, Local 3504, Bogota, Colombia; Avenida Carrera 15 No. 100-69, Oficina 303, Bogota, Colombia; Carrera 15 No. 93-60 Local 205, Bogota, Colombia; Calle 5 No.50-103, Local C108, Cali, Colombia; Carrera 1 No. 61A-30, Locales 80 y 81, Cali, Colombia; Calle 19 No. 6-48, Oficinas 403 y 404, Pereira, Colombia; Carrera 14 No. 18-56, Locales 34 y 35, Piso 3, Armenia, Colombia; Carrera 43A No. 34-95, Local 253, Medellin, Colombia; Carrera 54 No. 72-147, Local 144, Barranquilla, Colombia; NIT # 830063708-7 (Colombia)
Given the connections between the FARC and the President of Venezuela (Hugo Chavez Gives Millions To Terrorist Group FARC, Wants Uranium) it behooves America to keep a watchful eye on the terrorists in our own backyard.
Comments