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#1497898 - 01/20/11 07:36 PM
Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
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Member
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 96
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Customer is part owner of several businesses that we bank. This is a large family, with multiple businesses and they all appear on each other's LLC paperwork... He came in on 12/31 and presented 24 checks to a teller drawn against his convenience store account. 12 were payable to his sister and 12 were payable to his brother-in-law. Each was for the same dollar amount, the grand total was over $40,000. The memo on each check read "Jan2010, Feb2010, Mar2010" and so forth. The sister and brother-in-law are not members listed on the LLC paperwork. None of the checks were endorsed (by anyone) and he wanted to deposit them into his personal checking account. The teller ops manager refused to allow him to deposit them to his personal account but offered to stamp them for deposit only and place them in the sister and brother-in-laws account. He demanded an exception but none was granted. He agreed to place them in the payee's account and then asked for a withdrawal slip and completed it asking to transfer the money to his personal account. Since he is not a signer on the payees account this transaction was refused as well. He insisted that the transaction had to be completed that day. I'm sure what ever he is up to is not quite appropriate, but I can't really figure out if I should file a SAR, and if I do, How would I characterize the activity? He was likely getting money off the books for tax purposes, making it look like he was paying payroll so it was a payroll expense. But that is just my hunch and i can't prove any of it! Any ideas out there?
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#1497912 - 01/20/11 07:45 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
CompliKat
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10K Club
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 84,339
Galveston, TX
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Sounds like it to me and with no other information/explanation offered by the customer I would go with your hunch.
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The opinions expressed here should not be construed to be those of my employer: PPDocs.com
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#1497926 - 01/20/11 07:56 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
CompliKat
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Power Poster
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 4,444
New York City
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I have filed many SAR's for potential tax evasion. Remember, you don't have to prove anything. Investigating the underlying crime is the job of law enforcement, not the bank.
_________________________
"100 victories in 100 battles isnt the most skillful. Subduing the other's military w/o battle is the most skillful." Sun-Tzu
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#1497949 - 01/20/11 08:12 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
ACBbank
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100 Club
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 106
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What account were the checks to his sister and brother n law drawn off of? Is it an account at your bank? What was deposited into the account that he wrote them the checks off of? Any suspicious deposits that maybe he was trying to launder through accounts?
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#1497975 - 01/20/11 08:31 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
CompliKat
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100 Club
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 106
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If you were closer to me i would think we could be banking the same people...LOL We have a bunch of "brothers" that own multiple conv stores LLC's and write each other large "distribution" checks and they keep our attention at all times too!
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#1497990 - 01/20/11 08:42 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
TMichelle
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Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 42
East Coast
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I'd file the SAR. Tax evasion sounds like a good place to start. You are not the judge and jury, we just need to let our law enforcment know that we think something is hinky. Sounds hinky.
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#1498036 - 01/20/11 09:02 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
CompliKat
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10K Club
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 84,339
Galveston, TX
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I would not separate the two issues and just file combined SAR for both. This activity is just adjunct to the structuring.
_________________________
The opinions expressed here should not be construed to be those of my employer: PPDocs.com
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#1498063 - 01/20/11 09:17 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
rlcarey
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Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 96
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#1498153 - 01/20/11 10:19 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
CompliKat
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Diamond Poster
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 1,927
NYC
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Sooner or later you should also consider closing all of his accounts
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#1498228 - 01/21/11 01:37 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
CompliKat
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10K Club
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 21,939
Next to Harvey
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We have all faced "obstacles" where people higher on the food chain don't want to make tough choices. I've always encouraged bankers not to throw their career against that wall just to see if it would break.
However, don't let management's anticipated refusal to close an account chill your advice. Just make a written recommendation and, if it's turned down, go on to what's next. Rest assured that if this ever blows up, they will point out that you never suggested the relationship should be terminated. They will say that if you had suggested it, "We would have done it."
_________________________
In this world you must be oh so smart or oh so pleasant. Well, for years I was smart. I recommend pleasant.
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#1498246 - 01/21/11 02:00 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
Elwood P. Dowd
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Power Poster
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 4,444
New York City
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However, don't let management's anticipated refusal to close an account chill your advice. Just make a written recommendation and, if it's turned down, go on to what's next. Rest assured that if this ever blows up, they will point out that you never suggested the relationship should be terminated. They will say that if you had suggested it, "We would have done it." The truthiness of Ken's statement cannot be denied.
_________________________
"100 victories in 100 battles isnt the most skillful. Subduing the other's military w/o battle is the most skillful." Sun-Tzu
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#1498408 - 01/21/11 03:49 PM
Re: Fishy - Yes, SAR Worthy? As What?
ACBbank
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Power Poster
Joined: Sep 2001
Posts: 6,029
Sweet Home AL
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Another word of advice from someone who has been in the trenches since the inception of BSA...don't take it personally. This is business, keep it in perspective. Document your findings and recommendations, being clear to identify potential risks to the bank and let management to its job. Document, retain and move on to the next task at hand. Escalate issues only when risk warrants you to do so, not because you feel you aren't being heard.
Examinations often enable management to "see the light" if they are veering off course and you are well covered if you have performed your duties in a prudent, professional manner.
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Life without Jesus is like an unsharpened pencil - it has no point.
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