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Enforcement Drift: Chinese Money Laundering Networks Serving Mexico-Based Cartels. Beyond FinCEN Advisory FIN-2025-A003: Where Enforcement Has Moved and Where It Is Headed. Illicit Edge

Iranian operative used coded messages on NY jail call to direct failed UK terror plot. From a jail in New York, a commander of an Iranian terrorist proxy group helped direct a failed plot to attack a key UK Air Force base used by the US to execute the war with Iran. CNN

Russian Push to Escape Dollar for Yuan Collapses Under Sanctions Bloomberg

U.S. Received $12 Billion From Venezuela’s Oil New York Times

New Jersey town loses $26 million in ‘sophisticated financial theft’ Washington Post

Arrests made in Mohamed Al Fayed probe in France BBC

Wall Street regulator poised to bring charges against prediction market giant Kalshi Politico

US SEC enforcement activity plunges two years into Trump administration Reuters

Nvidia Hires Wachtell Lipton to Investigate CEO Jensen Huang’s Affair With Chinese Executive New York Times

US Army soldier suspected of spying for Russia arrested in UK BBC

From Politicians to Academics, Hundreds Around the Globe Interviewed and Featured in Notorious Russian Disinformation Campaign OCCRP

Malaysia’s Najib begins house arrest after leaving jail, but another possible prison sentence looms DW

Australia’s corporate regulator starts official probe into $2.3 billion Bathla collapse Reuters

Canada reimposes sanctions on 11 entities over Iranian non-compliance with nuclear obligations Jerusalem Post

Federal government blocks nearly $113 million to Minnesota amid fraud concerns Star Tribune

Commerce’s Lutnick was sent warning on Nvidia CEO affair Axios

Republicans release 137-page bombshell report on government’s glaring Jeffrey Epstein ‘failures’ Daily Mail

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🎙️ ILLICIT EDGE PODCASTS

Time to Stir the AML Pot FinCrime Unfiltered

Human Intelligence in Conflict Zones Coercive Capital

WISE and Monzo Penalties, and FinCEN Special Measures FinCrime Unfiltered

Tehran’s Tightrope: The Cost of Confrontation Coercive Capital

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💥 SANCTIONS & TERROR

FBI Washington Field Office Adds Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Member to Most Wanted Terrorists List, Releases Seeking Information Posters on Three IRGC Associates FBI

Jury convicts Canadian woman who ‘answered ISIS’s call’ Global News

Idaho Man Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Attempting to Provide Material Support to ISIS in Plot to Attack Churches DOJ

Egypt Lists 35 Europe-Linked Organizations and 36 Individuals as Terrorists: Full Names and Legal Implications Egypt Today

Hezbollah reportedly rebuilding networks in southern Lebanon pilot zones Long War Journal

Eight people killed in Kenya’s northeast in suspected al Shabaab attack Reuters

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🚩 RUSSIA & CHINA

Johnny on the spot: A hack of ex-Marine-turned-defector John Dougan’s messages reveals the rise and fall of a Russian disinformation asset Insider

Poland arrests two Ukrainians over alleged Russian espionage, sabotage Reuters

Three China-Nexus Espionage Campaigns Linked Through Sparrow Malware Ecosystem Hacker News

Russia’s ‘unfriendly countries’ list now targets individuals Euronews

Russians in Serbia Count the Cost of Alta Bank’s Collapse Moscow Times

Mapping Russian Supply Routes in Africa C4ADS

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💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME

FIFA Boss Faces Congressional Subpoenas Within Weeks Mediaite

Alina Habba Loses $50 Million Contract That Enraged Trump New York Times

Lawsuit Says Republican Strategist Alex Bruesewitz Took Money From Qatari Interests New York Times

Criminals reuse fake bank accounts to scam dozens of businesses Reuters

Susie Wiles’ old lobbying firm made $186 million under Trump. Now it’s caught in MAGA’s feud. CBS News

Scammed out of $700,000 on Tinder: Even smart people are falling for romance cons Washington Post

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🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER

Cyber criminal orchestrated £2m crypto theft bid from jail cell BBC

AI-fueled hacking is getting worse — top cyber companies are turning away some victims NBC News

Russian Turla Hackers Use New Cereal Malware to Steal Emails From Government Exchange Servers Hacker News

Binance warns of iOS flaw that could leak crypto wallet secrets BleepingComputer

Railway breach leads to $740,000 in fraudulent AI charges BleepingComputer

Binance Labs-backed Initia hacked again, $3.3M lost in three weeks Protos

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🚚 TRAFFICKING 

Interpol Crackdown on Migrant Smuggling Nets 262 Arrests OCCRP

Fugitive South L.A. Gang Member Living in Mexico and Cartel Plaza Boss Charged with Using Political Ties to Help Canadian Olympian Traffic Drugs and Evade Capture DOJ

How Albanian coke gangs cracked Britain UnHerd

Former Mexican soccer player charged in $5.4M international counterfeit watch trafficking scheme DOJ

Moment feds bust boat smuggling 18 illegal migrants off California coast New York Post

The Man Who Helped the C.I.A. Secretly Operate in Mexico New York Times

 


 

ILLICIT EDGE PODCASTS

🎙 FinCrime Unfiltered with Sarah Beth Felix
🎙 Designated with Yaya Jata Fanusie️
🎙 Coercive Capital with Elaine Dezenski

 


VIDEOS

 


INFLUENCERS

Sarah Beth Felix / Elaine Dezenski / Yaya J. Fanusie / Himamauli Das / Jim Richards / John Byrne / Tom Keatinge / Ari Redbord / Brian Krebs / Hagar Chemali / Joe Robinson / Christina Rea / Andy Greenberg / Moyara Ruehsen / Richard Weber / Erin West / Casey Michel / Varun Vira / Amit Sharma / Ken Rijock / Andrew King / Shlomit Wagman / Archana Bae / Crystal Noe / Jonathan Schanzer / Howard Spieler

 


RESOURCES

Financial Action Task Force /
Egmont Group /
Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project /
International Consortium of Investigative Journalists /
Money Laundering Watch/

C4ADS /
Combating Terrorism Center /
Royal United Services Institute /

 


IN OTHER NEWS

Binance Fired Investigators During Iran Probe. One Of Them Is Talking To The IRS. A former Binance financial crimes investigator tells the IRS that company leadership actively ignored attempts to investigate 2,000 Iran-linked accounts, as the federal investigation into the crypto giant ramps up. Forbes

U.S. Commerce Dept. Inquiry Into Megaspeed Was Halted After Nvidia Intervention New York Times

Brother of former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán detained in human trafficking investigation Insider

Danish court fines Nordea $23 million over insufficient money laundering checks Reuters

Trump says FBI is investigating Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s relationship with alleged Chinese spy NBC News

Iran acquires oil facilities in China to bypass US sanctions Iran International

Featured Report: North Korea is minting meme coins to launder the Binance hack Elliptic

EU Launches New Sanctions Office and Crypto Task Force Wall Street Journal

France blames Iran for cyberattacks targeting supermarket fridges Politico

Covert Russian network exploited French riots on social media Reuters

‘Largest jewelry heist in U.S. history’ suspect agrees to plead guilty Los Angeles Times

These Maps Show the Gangs and Guerrillas Ruling More Than 200 Million People Wall Street Journal

Operation Migrant: Inside the Russian smuggling scheme moving Middle Easterners and Africans into the EU Insider

Targeted by U.S., Armed Group Strikes Back in Colombia New York Times

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🚩 RUSSIA & CHINA

Canada announces fresh Russia-related sanctions Reuters

Russia Takes Control of Two Chinese Heavy-Lift Ships Used for Arctic LNG 2 Deliveries gCaptain

Wuxi Apptec removed from Pentagon list of chinese military companies Reuters

China extends sanctions suspension on US-linked units of S.Korea’s Hanwha Ocean by 2 months Reuters

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💥 SANCTIONS & TERROR

Egypt Designates Muslim Brotherhood as a Terrorist Entity Yemen Online

ISIS-loving Aussie teen who plotted a terror attack on the Sydney Opera House avoids jail as judge claims his parents taught him well Daily Mail

IDF finds weapons stockpiles, Hezbollah military site near UN posts in south Lebanon Long War Journal

GOP AGs Warn UK, Netherlands on Israel Sanctions Newsmax

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💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME

Ukraine arrests four in $5 million crypto scam targeting Germans Record

Devious scammers pose as FTC agents — convince elderly victims to drain savings for gold bars New York Post

Disgraced NBA star’s gambling addiction included betting millions on Russian Ping-Pong New York Post

Trump Sons’ Kazakh Mining Venture Loses US Government Lender Support Bloomberg

READOUT: FinCEN Hosts Exchange Event to Combat Overseas Scam Centers FinCEN

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🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER

Binance faces renewed scrutiny as CFO exits amid compliance turmoil Protos

Binance denies data breach after alleged ShinyHunters claims BleepingComputer

Coinbase gets full U.S. trust charter from federal banking regulator CoinDesk

LNbits Urges All Operators to Shut Down Their Bitcoin Lightning Wallet Servers Amid Attacks Hacker News

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🚚 TRAFFICKING 

14 Charged in Deadly Human Smuggling Scheme That Killed 7 Aliens Earlier This Year DOJ

Mexico captures alleged cartel cell leader in operation aided by DEA intelligence Reuters

Cocaine smugglers jailed for £40m plot BBC

Prolific Human Smuggler Extradited from Brazil Pleads Guilty to Smuggling Aliens into the United States DOJ

 


COMPLIANCE TOOLBOX

Trade-Related Illicit Financial Flows in Africa, 2013-2022 Global Financial Integrity

Do Export Controls Erode the United States’ Lead—Or Protect It? CSIS

Three Years of War in Ukraine: Are Sanctions Against Russia Making a Difference? CFR

Why does the U.S. use secondary sanctions, and do they work? DW

Teaching the Business and Art of Sanctions Circumvention RUSI

Understanding the Libra Case: Identifying Red Flags in The Crypto Assets Industry GFI

The next generation: Russia’s future rulers Atlantic Council

How overly aggressive bans on AI chip exports to China can backfire Brookings

Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC)

Securities and Exchange Commission

Office of the Comptroller of the Currency

OFSI (HM Treasury)

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European Union

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Interpol

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