The offence of Money Laundering is not just about converting ‘dirty’ money into ‘clean’ money. It is wider than that. 

In South Australia, Money Laundering can be charged in two ways: 

1. “A person who engages, directly or indirectly, in a transaction involving property the person knows to be tainted is guilty of an offence” (knowledge)
2. “A person who engages, directly or indirectly, in a transaction involving tainted property in circumstances in which the person ought reasonably to know that the property is tainted is guilty of an offence” (reckless) Knowingly engaging in Money Laundering has a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment. Money Laundering in circumstances where you ought to have known the property to be tainted has a maximum penalty of 4 years imprisonment. The significant difference in maximum penalty is a signal of the seriousness of each offence. 

This means that knowingly engaging in Money Laundering can be something as simple as storing a sum of cash knowing it to be the proceeds of drug trafficking. Recklessly engaging in Money Laundering can include allowing your bank account to be used for the transfer of funds to other accounts (if this is done in circumstances where further enquiries as to the lawfulness of the funds should have been made). 

In the current day and age, it is an the more important to be aware of possible scams, and to ensure relevant enquiries are made about the source of funds. In Speyer v Police [2020] SASC 41, the Defendant learnt this lesson the hard way after entering into an online relationship with someone through Facebook. Speyer ultimately ended up making various bank account transactions being told that the funds related to his online lover’s father’s deceased estate. After being warned not to continue such transactions by the bank, Speyer continued and was prosecuted. You can read the sentence appear judgment here: 

SPEYER v POLICE [2020] SASC 41 (19 March 2020) 

When the Court is sentencing someone for the offence of Money Laundering, a forfeiture order will often be made.

Written by Solicitor Taylor Falting