money laundering, how is it done? Options

[Wakshaani]

As for proper money laundering, the main way was always offshort based (Mmm, Swiss Bank Acounts(, butthe classics still apply.

For example, you have a small drug ring doing penny-ante gang level dealing. You have a guy that runs a laundrymat. Now, you being an unemployed goober, it looks weird you bringing in wads of cash, so, you work out a deal where you just GIVE the money to your pal, he deposits it in his bank so that it looks legit, then he cuts you a check for the original money, minus a small slice for a transaction fee, and you get to drop off your new, "Clean" money in a bank somewhere. Resteraunts, art dealerships, "Import-Export Houses", and, heck, even *banks* are all ways of doing this, depending on how much is going through.

Yoinking somebody's Commlink, then buying new Aztidas sneakers? Not quite the same concept. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Magus]

All right, but that means Squatter, Low, and Luxury don't require SINs. Which means you can get basics like food and clothing without a SIN. With a Luxury lifestyle, I assume that you're rich enough to bribe anyone who cares to complain about your lifestyle.

Edit: That was also SR3. In SR4, things may be different. I can't find that rule in the BBB4.

Also wrong per Runners Companion SR4 p.160

Being SINless
Being SINless in the ‘70s severely limits a character’s lifestyle.
Neighborhoods at a Middle rating and above will require
all metahumans to broadcast their SINs and IDs in all public
places. In addition, to legally rent or buy any apartment requires
a SIN, as do a myriad of other activities of daily life—such as
buying groceries, riding the bus, downloading sims, and having
utilities. The only way to get around this basic fact of life is to
live in a neighborhood where you can pay by certified cred or
barter—generally Street or Squatter neighborhoods, with the
occasional small gang-controlled territory.
Because of this, having a fake SIN is a necessity to get out
of the barrens and slums of the Sixth World. However, the level
of your fake SIN and ID restricts your ability to access the nicer
things in life. In game terms, you can only choose categories that
are one point higher than the rating of your fake SIN. A runner
with a Rating 2 fake SIN could only live in a Middle (3 LP)
Neighborhood and could only take the other categories at a rating
of 3.
A character with no SIN (real or fake) is limited to a total
lifestyle cost of 7 Lifestyle Points or less, including qualities.

and yes I do know the Advanced lifestyle rules are an optional rule. Just saying though.

[nezumi]

Now, you being an unemployed goober, it looks weird you bringing in wads of cash, so, you work out a deal where you just GIVE the money to your pal, he deposits it in his bank so that it looks legit, then he cuts you a check for the original money, minus a small slice for a transaction fee, and you get to drop off your new, "Clean" money in a bank somewhere. Resteraunts, art dealerships, "Import-Export Houses", and, heck, even *banks* are all ways of doing this, depending on how much is going through.

I suspect you're going to find most businesses must properly report their income, so unless the fellow is paying $5,000 to get a pair of jeans washed, it'll still run a risk of triggering alarms. There's a certain amount of leeway one way or the other (so an employed person can probably babysit under the table without any trouble, but if he makes $20k running drugs, it's likely to raise a flag somewhere), however I don't believe those limits are significantly different between a legitimate business and an unemployed person. So 'laundering' it through a for-profit business doesn't really help anyone.

However, groups like charities do not need to report their income, since they allow for anonymous charity donations. If the 'employed' person ran a church, the drug-dealer could 'donate' $20k to that church. The church can then cut the person a non-interest 'loan' with no stated collection date for some particular person.

Snow Fox wrote a fantastic post on this subject which is well worth your time if you're interested in the subject.

[hyzmarca]

The key to a good money laundering operation is to have a reasonable explanation for that extra income, to "cook the books" as they say. Done well, it can take several man-years of forensic accounting work to discover the discrepancies. Done perfectly, it would be impossible to detect without inside knowledge.

[Daddy's Litt...]

I should probably point out that there are such things as prepaid credit cards, available today, that are essentially the same as certified credsticks. They work exactly like a standard credit card, but they don't require an ID to use. some don't even require a PIN. Even though they're attached to an electronic account, the card itself is "untraceable", in that no one can prove that it wasn't lost, stolen, or given away.

That is what I was thinking of. Once you get it on the certified stick you are home free. It is as good as cash. the trick is getting it on the stick in the first place.

[Cain]

I suspect you're going to find most businesses must properly report their income, so unless the fellow is paying $5,000 to get a pair of jeans washed, it'll still run a risk of triggering alarms. There's a certain amount of leeway one way or the other (so an employed person can probably babysit under the table without any trouble, but if he makes $20k running drugs, it's likely to raise a flag somewhere), however I don't believe those limits are significantly different between a legitimate business and an unemployed person. So 'laundering' it through a for-profit business doesn't really help anyone.

A laundromat would be particularly tricky to verify income on, unless you have a money counter in each machine. If they go they way I think they are, you use a credstick to buy a prepaid card. An increase of 5,000 might be a bit large, but depending on how much you usually bring in, it might not show up.

The best places to launder money are casinos. Because no one can verify how much was won or lost for a given night, you can easily launder a large sum of money. You don't even need to gamble much, or have the casino's permission. You just go in, buy 10,000 in chips, gamble away a thousand or so, and walk out of there with 9,000 in "winnings".

[hyzmarca]

A laundromat would be particularly tricky to verify income on, unless you have a money counter in each machine. If they go they way I think they are, you use a credstick to buy a prepaid card. An increase of 5,000 might be a bit large, but depending on how much you usually bring in, it might not show up.

The weakness of the laundromat is in the utility bills. It is fairly simple to calculate the wattage used by an appliance and the price is written right on the machine. With those numbers and the reported income you can find a minimum value and a maximum value for power usage going by the numbers. If the actual power usage is significantly outside that range (to a degree that can't be accounted for by fiddling with the thermostat), then you know that something is wrong.

[HappyDaze]

A laundromat would be particularly tricky to verify income on, unless you have a money counter in each machine.

RFID tags on every article of clothing cleaned? When ever you need to find a way to make it not work out, just tap into the mess that is limitless wireless Matrix!

[Tarantula]

You could still keep the machines running 24/7. And calculate out how much cash per month you can launder with that fake business.

[Cain]

RFID tags on every article of clothing cleaned? When ever you need to find a way to make it not work out, just tap into the mess that is limitless wireless Matrix!

I really, sincerely doubt that a laundromat would keep that sort of information. And that's even assuming that RFID chips aren't hurt by the washing and drying process. But you're right that this aspect of the matrix makes no sense whatsoever. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

[Shiloh]

RFID tags on every article of clothing cleaned? When ever you need to find a way to make it not work out, just tap into the mess that is limitless wireless Matrix!

So you'd have to have the IRS snooping on every laundromat, and have machines that won't start if the load in them differs much from the load as calculated from the RFID chips inside it... Tricky, that last. Especially for driers.

With boots on the ground and sufficient resource allocated, most laundering operations can be detected. Whether the Organised Crime Division (ooo. OCD.) of the Star are interested in penny-ante amounts is another matter.

[HappyDaze]

Remember also that those clothes have owners that the RFID will flag. If you're washing and drying the same pair of jeans for the same customer 200 times a day, it will look odd. And yes, by the silly wireless standards of SR4 that data will exist (unless hacked), but nobody will really notice - until the IRS investigates.

[Tarantula]

Pfff, tell them you accept certified creds as its in a shitty part of town, and most of the people there can't afford the clothes with RFID in them.

[wind_in_the_ston...]

Where did you get that idea from?

Hmm. I guess I just assumed that since the amounts on certsticks were set upon creation at the bank, they would only be able to be changed at the bank. Like a cashier's check. But as long as they're tied to an account, I don't see why the account couldn't be debited.

[HappyDaze]

most of the people there can't afford the clothes with RFID in them.

AFAICT, all clothes have RFID in them - only the wealthy can afford the tech to remove them.

tell them you accept certified creds

That alone will get you a hairly eyeball from the auditor if large amounts of your funds are coming or going in certified cred. Only two types deal in it with any regularity - the fabulously wealthy and criminals. I doubt our laundromat is catering to the AAA crowd.

[Cain]

That alone will get you a hairly eyeball from the auditor if large amounts of your funds are coming or going in certified cred. Only two types deal in it with any regularity - the fabulously wealthy and criminals. I doubt our laundromat is catering to the AAA crowd.

That's not necessarily true. The SINless aren't criminals, but they'd use certified cred exclusively. Our laundromat could be catering to the SINless.

[HappyDaze]

Our laundromat could be catering to the SINless.

That's all well and good until large sums of money start moving through. When the non-taxed populace shows signs of having large amounts of money it attracts attention.

[Cain]

That's all well and good until large sums of money start moving through. When the non-taxed populace shows signs of having large amounts of money it attracts attention.

It would explain large amounts of (taxable) cred, though. Which is the point; business in a laundromat is harder to track than, say, a McHugh's. You can go off of inventory, and discover where the money came from. A laundromat? Not so much.

But like I said, the best bet is a casino. You can't track money in a casino; and depending on the game, you might not be allowed to tax it, either.

[Fabe]

Certified credsticks aren't easy to use. They come with a set amount. This means you've got to have a pocketful of them to come anywhere near close to what you're buying. I imagine a lot of places would balk at giving 30¥ change for a 50¥ stick.

Where did you get that idea from? Credsticks come in many different values, according to the BBB; I'm too lazy to look up the page ref right now, though. And it works just like a prepaid credit card-- you can debit just what you need, and even add to the balance if you want to.

Cain is right ,if you use a stick with 50 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) on it to make a 30 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) purchase then all that happens is that the 30 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) is deduced from the stick leaving you with 20 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) left over. As for needing a whole pocket full of them the standard ones have a max of 5000 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) on them with the ebony have a max of 1,000,000 (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nuyen.gif) .

[Shiloh]

Remember also that those clothes have owners that the RFID will flag. If you're washing and drying the same pair of jeans for the same customer 200 times a day, it will look odd.

So just capture the data of your regulars and run them through 10 or 20 percent more often by tossing a handful of cloned RFID tags into the washer while it's running.

And yes, by the silly wireless standards of SR4 that data will exist (unless hacked), but nobody will really notice - until the IRS investigates.

The data will be available to be collected, yes, but who's going to do that? Will RFID tag loggers be made mandatory in industrial washer-dryers?

Always assuming that there's still a high cash flow place for the laundromat in a world of disposables...

[nezumi]

That's not necessarily true. The SINless aren't criminals, but they'd use certified cred exclusively. Our laundromat could be catering to the SINless.

1) The SINless ARE necessarily criminals. They are, by definition, living illegally (if it's not illegal to be on UCAS turf without a SIN, it's certainly illegal to engage in commerce without one available, as people who don't have a SIN don't pay taxes, and people who don't pay taxes are breaking the law.)

2) They don't have to use certified cred exclusively. In places where a given currency is not available, another method of trade will evolve. Mafia-backed currency, corporate scrip, actual bills and coins and conventional barter are all noted as methods available for the SINless to use. From what I've read, most SINless won't have certified cred because of the difficulty inherit and acquiring it (at minimum, you have to get your butt to a bank and convince them to accept mafia currency, corporate scrip, actual bills and coins or barter as payment, without the benefit of an ID. Just try doing that now.)

This generates a very hard line between the rich and the poor. The poor need to struggle just to BUY essential services. This results in zones which are clearly barrios, and zones which clearly are not, because a legitimate store catering to SINned people will track costs and identities and won't accept SINless, while an illegitimate store will do the opposite.

Debatably, extraterritoriality (or straight bribery) allows some stores to operate in both arenas. This could be part of the success of Stuffer Shack. If it's officially extraterritorial, it may have different reporting requirements than the Kwik-E-Mart down the street. When the IRS agent is doing the rounds, he demands to see the number of supplies used at the Kwik-E-Mart, number of customers services and their identities, to determine actual profit. When he goes to the Stuffer Shack, he goes to Aztechnology and can get a 'condensed report' or somesuch.

[Shiloh]

...it's certainly illegal to engage in commerce without one available, as people who don't have a SIN don't pay taxes, and people who don't pay taxes are breaking the law...

Is it really mandatory to present a SIN at a street soydog seller to get your lunch?

[Tarantula]

Is it really mandatory to present a SIN at a street soydog seller to get your lunch?

When you let him charge your commlink, it will flash your sin to his, which will check it before processing the transaction... so yes.

[kzt]

I suspect you're going to find most businesses must properly report their income, so unless the fellow is paying $5,000 to get a pair of jeans washed, it'll still run a risk of triggering alarms. There's a certain amount of leeway one way or the other (so an employed person can probably babysit under the table without any trouble, but if he makes $20k running drugs, it's likely to raise a flag somewhere), however I don't believe those limits are significantly different between a legitimate business and an unemployed person. So 'laundering' it through a for-profit business doesn't really help anyone.

You can do no-show jobs. Chicago municipal departments are full of them. Person is on the payroll, shows hours worked every day, has taxes withdrawn, etc. But essentially he just gets a check deposited in his account every two weeks, he may have never even SEEN the place he is supposed to work.

[Cain]

From what I've read, most SINless won't have certified cred because of the difficulty inherit and acquiring it (at minimum, you have to get your butt to a bank and convince them to accept mafia currency, corporate scrip, actual bills and coins or barter as payment, without the benefit of an ID. Just try doing that now.)

Like was said before, nowadays you can get a prepaid credit card without showing ID, all you need is cash. So yes, I can do that now: I can buy a bearer bond, or a credit card, with no ID and no hassle.

When you let him charge your commlink, it will flash your sin to his, which will check it before processing the transaction... so yes.

If you use certified cred, you don't need to flash a SIN.