Enforcement of U.S. Sanctions Benefits Local Prosecutors, Data Shows Manhattan DA’s office has received billions of dollars in penalties and forfeitures from corporate economic sanctions violation cases since 2000, according to data from a nonprofit Most of the $4.9 billion collected in penalties by New York local prosecutors in the past two decades came from a dozen large criminal cases against major foreign banks for alleged violations of U.S. sanctions and New York state law. Pictured, Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. Photo: Frank Franklin II/Associated Press By Mengqi Sun Dec. 26, 2019 6:00 am ET An increase in the enforcement of U.S. economic sanctions has led to a windfall for local prosecutors in Manhattan. Corporate penalties related to economic sanctions violations have pulled in about $4.6 billion in penalties and forfeitures for the Manhattan district attorney’s office since 2000, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of data compiled by Good Jobs First, a nonprofit. Penalties in the past two years alone have accounted for 17% of that total. “Our investigations have changed the way that banks do business, and shut off spigots of funds flowing to terrorists, human rights violators, traffickers, money launderers, and others who threaten our city, our nation, and our allies around the world,” Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. said in a statement. Newsletter Sign-up The criminal cases, often conducted jointly with federal agencies such as the Justice Department and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, usually alleged that foreign banks broke New York state laws by falsifying business records. Such cases are brought to protect the financial market in New York and to combat terrorism finance, a spokesman for the Manhattan DA’s office said. Asset forfeiture from economic and white-collar crime cases, including sanctions violations, has enabled the office to invest in crime prevention and justice system reform, Mr. Vance said. The forfeitures are also distributed to the treasuries of New York City and the state. Good Jobs First, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that promotes corporate and government accountability, tracked corporate misconduct cases brought by local prosecutors in the nation’s 50 largest cities and 50 largest counties that resulted in fines or settlements since 2000 as part of the latest expansion of its Violation Tracker database. Across the jurisdictions, there were about 565 corporate misconduct cases that amounted to about $7.2 billion in penalties during the roughly 20-year period. The alleged violations ranged from bribery and fraud to food safety and zoning violations. Local prosecutors in California have brought the highest number of successful cases against alleged business misconduct, securing about $2.3 billion in settlements or penalties from 441 lawsuits since 2000, according to the data. Most of the cases were charges on issues such as consumer protection violations and environmental violations. Related COSO to Issue Guidance on Blockchain December 27, 2019 How the Justice Department Incentivizes Companies to Invest in Compliance December 24, 2019 New York’s district attorneys, meanwhile, topped counterparts in other states in receiving the most penalty dollars of $4.9 billion from 88 suits, which included cases on alleged wage-and-hour violations and anti-money-laundering deficiencies. The bulk of the total—$4.6 billion—was due to a dozen large criminal cases against major foreign banks for alleged violations of U.S. economic sanctions and New York state law within the last decade, according to Philip Mattera, head of the corporate research project at Good Jobs First. The largest corporate misconduct case for the Manhattan district attorney, according to the data, was a joint investigation with multiple federal and state authorities against French bank BNP Paribas SA for violating U.S. sanctions and processing transactions on behalf of clients blacklisted by the U.S. As a part of the resolution, BNP Paribas in 2014 agreed to pay about $2.2 billion in forfeiture and penalties to the Manhattan DA’s office, according to the data. The bank pleaded guilty to violating New York laws by conspiring to and falsifying business records of financial institutions in New York, according to a statement from the agency at the time. A spokesman for BNP Paribas declined to comment. The second-biggest case, according to the data, was against German bank UniCredit Bank AG, a subsidiary of Italian company UniCredit SpA. The bank in April agreed to plead guilty and pay $316 million in penalties in a New York state court to criminal charges that it falsified business records and committed conspiracy for allegedly moving hundreds of millions of dollars through banks in Manhattan on behalf of blacklisted countries and entities, according to the Manhattan district attorney’s office. A spokeswoman for UniCredit referred to the company’s previous statement relating to the resolution. “The banks have cooperated with the U.S. and New York authorities in their investigations for many years, including sharing the results of extensive internal investigations, and remain committed to continued cooperation with regulators globally,” the company said in April. Write to Mengqi Sun at mengqi.sun@wsj.com https://www.wsj.com/articles/enforc...fits-local-prosecutors-data-shows-11577358001
Such tricks have been and are in the economy of almost any state. After all, the treasury needs to be replenished all the time and how to do it at a time when something went wrong and the world news will be filled with information about what are the problems and that the situation is desperate. And that's a legitimate way to get things back to normal. Although for many it will seem something very cruel and wrong. But again, if the reasons for the fines and sanctions are real and justified, then I do not see a subject for discussion at all, and for everything in this life you have to pay. I emphasize that I do not support fictitious fines, which are necessary just to punish those who are disliked by the authorities.