The Department of Internal Affairs announced on Tuesday civil proceedings had been filed in the High Court against Christchurch Casinos Ltd for “alleged non-compliance with the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (CFT) (Act)”.
“DIA alleges that Christchurch Casinos Limited failed to meet its compliance obligations under the Act, which are needed to uphold the integrity of New Zealand’s financial system.
“These include the obligations to establish, implement and maintain a robust AML/CFT compliance programme, to conduct enhanced customer due diligence and terminate business relationships when required, to monitor accounts, and to keep records as required by the Act.”
The relevant law is the Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) Act.
The alleged failures occurred between December 2018 and December 2023.
Christchurch Casino was not alleged to be directly involved in money laundering or the financing of terrorism.
“New Zealand casinos can be exploited by criminals to launder the proceeds of crime and to finance terrorism if robust processes aren’t maintained,” the DIA said in a statement.
“Casinos must implement strong measures to prevent this.”
Christchurch Casino and its owners Skyline Enterprises have not yet had an opportunity to respond to the DIA’s public statement, Stuff reported.
In September, SkyCity Entertainment Group confirmed it was fined $4.16 million for breaching AML/CFT obligations.
In that case, Internal Affairs reviewed SkyCity’s compliance between September 2022 and December 2023 and found SkyCity breached its obligations.
