Publications
OFAC Concealed Important Information from Justice: It Destroyed the Sanctions Criminal Case
March 2, 2021 – Pravo.ru
(Russian Language Publication) Impressive story of an Iranian investor doing global business and coming under the scrutiny of the sanctions authorities. Lawyers explain why this might be interesting for Russian citizens who are at different stages of criminal prosecution for violations of sanctions and export control rules in the United States.
The Biden Administration’s Policy Toward Central America and the Challenges Posed by Corruption
February 10, 2021 – International Enforcement Law Reporter – by Dennis Boyle
President Biden is not a stranger to Central America. As Vice-President, he met with Central American leaders in an effort to strengthen ties between the United States and the region. As a candidate for President, he has announced an ambitious plan for Central America, particularly the Northern Triangle of Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador. The Biden Plan to Build Security and Prosperity with the People of Central America sets forth a number of goals for the region, including $4 billion dollars in aid from the United States.
U.S. Seizes over $1 Billion Dollars in Silk Road Case
November 24, 2020 – International Enforcement Law Reporter Blog – by Dennis Boyle
It has been five years since that iconic character from my daughter’s favorite childhood movie, the Dread Pirate Roberts, was sentenced to life in prison for the piratical life he led. Not really. But it has been five years since Ross Ulbricht, a/k/a “The Dread Pirate Roberts,” a/k/a DPR, was sentenced to life in prison for operating the Silk Road, a darknet market website where illegal narcotics, firearms and other forms of contraband were bought and sold using a secure web browser known as Tor. The website, with Ulbricht as its master, operated for several years, selling goods worth billions of dollars before the government seized the website and arrested Ulbricht. Following a jury trial, Ulbricht was convicted on multiple counts of a federal Indictment.
Former Mexican Defense Minister Arrested for Drug Trafficking in the United States
October 27, 2020 – International Enforcement Law Reporter Blog – by Dennis Boyle
On October 15, 2020, General Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeta, 72, former Defense Minister of Mexico from 2012 to 2018 under President Enrique Pena Nieto, was arrested by U.S. federal authorities in Los Angeles on charges of Drug Trafficking. The four-count indictment against Cienfuegos charges him with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine, heroin, methamphetamines, and marijuana, as well as conspiracy to launder proceeds from the sale of narcotics. After his transfer to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, he was denied bail.
Who is a “U.S. Person?” Are there any limits to American Jurisdiction Under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act?
International Enforcement Law Reporter – A special contribution from Dennis Boyle
Sanctions are a powerful tool in the United States’ foreign policy arsenal. Under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), armed with only an executive order, has the power to designate individuals, corporations, organizations or even countries as “Specially Designated Nationals” (SDNs) thereby prohibiting “U.S. persons” from engaging in financial transactions with the SDN. While one may question the wisdom of imposing economic sanctions based upon the collateral economic damage to American firms, few would question the authority of the U.S. to prohibit its citizens from providing financial assistance to those who seek to undermine U.S. security or foreign policy goals.
The “China Initiative”: The U.S. Department of Justice’s Country Specific Focus on the People’s Republic of China
September 30, 2020 – International Enforcement Law Reporter, Vol. 36, Issue 10
Allegations by the American Administration of intellectual property theft emanating from the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are not new. In June2018, the White House Office of Trade and Manufacturing Policy issued a report entitled “How China’s Economic Aggression Threatens the Technologies and Intellectual Property of the United States and the World.” In the 35-page Report, the Administration accuses the Chinese government itself of engaging in “two major strategies and various acts and practices . . .seeking to acquire the intellectual property and technologies of the world and to capture emerging high-technology industries that will drive future economic growth.” Of course, many countries, including the United States, would like to dominate future intellectual property and technology development and growth as a means of securing economic prosperity. China is different from other countries, according to the Report, because of its systematic use of criminal activity authorized at the highest levels of the government and the Communist Party of the PRC.
American Sanctions: The Reality of Criminal Prosecution and What the Case of Oleg Nikitin Teaches
Dec 7, 2019 – Pravo.ru
(Russian Language Publication) This article discusses the Indictment of a Russian national, Oleg Nitikin for violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a statute that by its own terms applies to “U.S. persons”.
Rabobank Pleads Guilty to Conspiracy Charge, Agrees to Forfeit $368 Million
Feb 28, 2018 – International Enforecement Law Reporter, Vol. 34, Issue 2
The article reports on Rabobank’s recent guilty plea to conspiracy and discusses criminal liability for money laundering. Rabobank had a weak compliance program that allowed the bank to capitalize on cash based customers operating along the U.S. Mexican border. Ultimately, however, the bank not only pled guilty; it also forfeited nearly $368 million dollars to the U.S. government.
The Special Investigative Measures of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers: Are the Protections Adequate?
Jan 26, 2018 – International Enforcement Law Reporter, Vol. 34, Issue 1
The article examines the adequacy of due process protections afforded by the Kosovar law creating the Kosovo Specialist Chambers.
The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia closes but the Kosov Specialist Chamber has yet to Begin
Dec 28, 2017 – Zery
Article (published in Albanian) discusses the closing of the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia and the opening of the Kosovo Specialist Chambers. The two international tribunals both addressed war crimes arising out of the disintegration of the former Yugoslavia.
The Right Experience
Jan 27, 2017 – LinkedIn
Article addresses the qualities that a client, particularly a client who is not located in the U.S. should look for when retaining white collar criminal counsel in the U.S.
DOJ Edict Muddies Roles
Jan 8, 2016 – Washington Business Journal
Identifies issues with legal representation in corporate internal investigations.
How Healthcare Providers Can Silence the DOJ Alarm
Oct 6, 2015 – Compliance Insider