Egyptian parliament discusses dissociating money laundering crime from original crime

CAIRO – 22 May 2022: Minister of Justice Omar Marwan attended Sunday the plenary session of the House of Representatives to discuss the draft amendments to the money laundering law, and that are pertinent to defining the crime and its dissociation from the original crime.  

The draft amendment of the second article provides that "money laundering is a crime independent from the original crime. A money laundering culprit is someone who knows that certain money or assets are acquired through the original crime, and deliberately transferred such earnings with the aim of hiding the money; covering up its nature, source, location, and owner; and, obstructing the disclosure of the owner or the culprit of the original crime…The issuance of a verdict in the original crime is not a pre-condition to prove the illegitimate source of the money as long as there is evidence showing that the money is the outcome of acts that would undermine the internal and external security of  the country, economic interest of the society, ruining the political life or exposing national unity to danger."

A number of parliamentarians objected the dissociation between proving the money laundering crime and the issuance of a verdict in the original crime. However, the minister argued that the court can dismiss any case due to a number of technical reasons other than the defendant(s) being innocent. Hence, the money shall not be kept by suspects, it has to go to the state's treasury, the minister added.  

On his side, Speaker Hanafi al-Gebali noted that the Supreme Constitutional Course considers the concept acceptable constitutionally to protect the society, and given that the confiscation of the money would be based on a court ruling.