Iraq - $800M In Money Laundering Every Week...

US: Iraqi Audit Points to Huge Money Laundering

Iraqi auditors believe as much as $800 million in U.S. dollars is being sent out of the country illegally each week, draining it of hard currency, according to a report by American inspectors released Tuesday.

The findings point to widespread money laundering and could focus further attention on oversight at Iraq's central bank, which is at the heart of a probe into alleged financial wrongdoing involving its former governor and other top officials.

The U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction said in a report that auditors in Baghdad fear up to 80 percent of an estimated $1 billion leaving the country weekly lacks proper documentation. . .

Turki also raised concerns about "what he called a triangle of sectarianism, corruption and violence, in which each element feeds off the others in a dynamic that threatens the well-being of the state," according to the SIGIR report.

US: Iraqi Audit Points to Huge Money Laundering [link to nyti.ms]