Sticky Notes

Macau Account Shut Down

We know that the US has been successful in cutting off the movement of counterfeit US money from North Korea . The latest report I made referred to the China-based bank, Banco Delta Asia, in Macau . Macau 's government took control of the bank and froze $24 million.

Then Money Moved to Singapore

Immediately following that shut-down, Donga.com reports North Korea opened an account in Singapore . “ Recently, a source in Washington D.C. said, “With the American administration raising its pressure on North Korea’s funds in Macao, North Korea attempted to change its bank to Singapore, and the new haven is known as a small bank referred to as O Bank.”

I could not find any news sources to name what O Bank stands for.....

But poster on this same story at Rantburg, says, “I used to work for a Singapore bank. Offshore banking is big business there, but there are no 'small' local banks. All the small banks are foreign banks (branch operations). If it is a local bank it's OCBC.

Now OCBC is a bank (both in Singapore and Malaysia ) that’s in Myrtus’ story on Wachovia banks. Her supposition (without negative dispersions against Wachovia) is that many of the banks being tracked seem to be in the Wachovia network, thus perhaps making movement of this counterfeit money easier.

New Accounts Now in Vietnam

Now Bloomberg reports, “ North Korea 's Tanchon Commercial Bank and Daedong Credit Bank opened the accounts in Vietnam and the country has new agreements with 23 banks in 10 countries, including Mongolia and Russia .”

Sidenote – Wachovia has approximately 20 bank affiliations in Vietnam . Please note again, that all this money has to go through someone’s network. In an earlier issue with Middle East African Bank, they immediately terminated a relationship.

Once again, the US is using the PATRIOT ACT, to cut off these funds “as a way to put pressure on the communist country to stop trying to develop nuclear weapons.”

More Connections on Counterfeit Money and the Peace Talks

The Hankyoreh in South Korea reports that, “ Pyongyang has been staying away from six-nation talks on the North's nuclear ambitions since November, shortly after Washington imposed sanctions on the Macau bank. The communist state says it will not return to the nuclear talks until Washington lifts the financial sanctions.”

On this story: Myrtus, Ali, SnappedShot, Bad Example

One last connection on the homefront....
Michigan Seen as Home to Criminal Conspiracy to Fund Hezbollah

Hawaii Reporter - Youssef Aoun Bakri, 36, pleaded guilty in federal court charged with: "operating a criminal enterprise to traffic in contraband cigarettes and counterfeit goods, producing counterfeit cigarette tax stamps, and laundering money. Most troubling was the fact that some of the profits made from the illegal enterprise were given to Hezbollah, a designated foreign terrorist organization (DFTO), according to the indictment."

This cigarette business is a big deal in raising funds to send overseas. They are trucked from Norht Carolina and sold at a premium.