US Seeks $2 Million Forfeiture From Companies Laundering Money for North Korean Banks

The Department of Justice issued a forfeiture complaint against four companies that allegedly laundered money on behalf of U.S.-sanctioned North Korean banks, the agency said July 23. The complaint calls for the forfeiture of more than $2 million used to buy goods for the North Korean government, the Justice Department said. The four unnamed companies were part of a money-laundering scheme involving three sanctioned entities: Velmur Management Pte. Ltd, Dandong Zhicheng Metallic Material Co. and multiple branches of North Korea’s Foreign Trade bank. “This complaint illuminates how a global money laundering network coordinates with front companies to move North Korean money through the United States,” acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Michael Sherwin said in a statement. “This case demonstrates that we will use all tools … to target companies that harm U.S. national security, regardless of where they are doing business.”