Category: Financial Crime

Regulatory Watch News

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  County Housing Official Sentenced for His Role in Multimillion-Dollar Scheme to Receive Bribes From Hawaii Businessman and Attorneys

  US Department of Justice

  May 29, 2026

  A former Hawaii County official, Alan Scott Rudo, 59, now of Cathedral City, California, was sentenced yesterday to 46 months in prison for his role in a conspiracy to receive bribes in exchange for his official actions as a Housing Specialist at the Hawaii County Office of Housing and Community Development (OHCD). The scheme involved affordable housing development agreements worth more than $11 million.

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  Operation against criminal network smuggling migrants between Algeria and Spain: nine arrests

  Europol

  May 29, 2026

  A collaborative operation between the Spanish Guardia Civil and National Police (Policía Nacional), supported by Europol, has resulted in nine arrests and the dismantling of a criminal network smuggling irregular migrants from Algeria to Spain. The operation targeted migrant smugglers responsible for organising trips across the Mediterranean, as well as those managing the complex logistics behind the smuggling events. Europol's migrant smuggling experts provided crucial operational support to the Spanish authorities leading up to and during the action day.

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  FINTRAC publishes money laundering indicators relating to human trafficking and major international sporting and entertainment events

  FINTRAC

  May 28, 2026

  FINTRAC published today a Special Bulletin on human trafficking risks associated with major international sporting and entertainment events to help businesses subject to the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (the Act) detect transactions related to human trafficking activities and report suspicious transactions to the Centre. Major international sporting and entertainment events can attract hundreds of thousands of visitors from home and abroad.  This can boost economic activity in sectors such as hospitality, entertainment, transportation and tourism, which are vulnerable to human trafficking. These events generate short‑term surges in economic activity and demand for services, labour and transactions, and may intensify conditions under which exploitation activities are present.