Money laundering on the rise

The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) of Bhutan has said it has uncovered that the country had lost millions in last three years through fraudulent practices.

According to the investigation, the result of Indian currency shortage in Bhutan a few years back was the result of money laundering. It said, millions of Indian rupees were diverted to India through illegal means.

The Royal Monetary Authority’s (RMA) measures to curb the outflow of INR (Indian Rupee) since 2011 has resulted in both Bhutanese and non-Bhutanese resorting to avail INR by faking imports of zero tax commodities, manipulation of imports, illegal transaction of currency and using ATM cards.

The ACC said it has uncovered a racket of Automated Teller Machine (ATM) cards being used to divert more than INR 2.86 million (M) monthly from Bhutan since 2013.

An Indian man has been arrested who is alleged to be involved in this racket. Three non-Bhutanese and a Bhutanese, suspected to be part of the racket team, are under detention.