Online Gambling Sites Linked to Fentanyl Money Laundering

According to an Operational Alert from the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC), criminal groups are utilizing online gambling sites and related payment processors to clean money obtained from fentanyl production and trafficking. 

Illicit Financial Transactions 

According to suspicious transaction reports, identified fentanyl dealers often directed funds obtained from several incoming email money transfers to gambling platforms and received corresponding payments from linked payment processors located in Malta, Canada, and the UK. 

There are suspicions that people are transferring money to and from online casinos to create the appearance of bets and earnings. Even though Gaming News Canada indicated, it’s uncertain whether those gambling sites are authorized or unlawful. 

Funds In and Out from iGaming Platforms 

The Operational Alert stems from collaborative efforts among FINTRAC, Canada’s financial intelligence bureau, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) in the U.S., and the Unidad de Inteligencia Financiera in Mexico. The three units collaborated to establish the North American Drug Dialogue Illicit Financing Working Group aimed at creating money laundering indicators pertaining to the import, production, and distribution of illegal synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, as well as assisting law enforcement probes. 

Information from companies that provide alerts regarding this activity will result in actionable financial insights that support investigations and prosecutions. 

Operation Alert is connected to Project Guardian, which began in 2018. This broader public-private partnership is spearheaded by CIBC alongside various financial intelligence units, law enforcement agencies, and private sector individuals to combat money laundering associated with the import, production, and distribution of illegal synthetic opioids. 

5,000 Suspicious Transactions

The FINTRAC report also said organized crime groups are “importing or diverting essential precursor chemicals and lab equipment from China and other Asian countries for the production of illegal synthetic opiods.”

The Operational Alert was created after examining 5,000 suspicious transaction reports connected to fentanyl and illegal synthetic opioids collected between 2020 and 2023, along with data from other financial intelligence units, contributions from domestic and international governmental and non-governmental organizations, and open source information to validate suspicious trends, patterns, and indicators.

"We are committed to working with our domestic partners and North American allies to protect our communities and our citizens from the scourge of fentanyl and other illegal synthetic opioids that is being fuelled by transnational organized crime,” said Sarah Paquet, Director and Chief Executive Officer, FINTRAC.

“We have shown with Project Guardian that, by following the money and leveraging the power of financial intelligence, we can effectively target, disrupt and dismantle the organized criminal networks that profit from this insidious illicit activity and threaten the safety and security of Canadians and North Americans.”

Utilized Cryptocurrencies 

In 2023-24, FINTRAC's intelligence supported 266 significant investigations and numerous individual inquiries at municipal, provincial, and federal levels throughout Canada and beyond. 

According to a statement by FINTRAC, these criminal groups are utilizing "darknet marketplaces and virtual currencies" to trade and traffic fentanyl and other unlawful synthetic opioids globally, "in addition to other conventional methods."