The Wall Street Journal | By: Jacob Gershman, Ian Talley and Aruna Viswanantha | July 6, 2017 8:37 p.m. ET:
A federal court in May gave the department authority to investigate alleged money laundering involving a Chinese coal-trading network.
A federal court in Washington, D.C., has granted the Justice Department sweeping authority to investigate alleged North Korean money laundering involving a Chinese coal-trading network.
A search warrant approved in May and revealed in documents unsealed Thursday allowed federal prosecutors to secretly monitor transactions at eight major banks in the U.S. with accounts owned by a web of entities suspected of evading trade sanctions against North Korea.
In court papers, the government said hundreds of millions of dollars of illegal transactions flowed through the banks, most of which are based in the U.S. and haven’t been accused of unlawful activity.
Prosecutors alleged in court papers that U.S. currency routed through the banks showed “patterns of North Korean money laundering identified by” two North Korean defectors and supported North Korea’s weapons programs.
To read full article – please click here.
