The Policing of Money Laundering: The Role of Dubai Police

This thesis examines trends and issues in the policing of money laundering in Dubai focusing on the role of Dubai Police in money laundering control. It acknowledges that money laundering is a global phenomenon and Dubai is not an exception. It explores the existing governmental initiatives aimed at addressing money laundering and the financing of terrorism. Whilst the unit of analysis in this thesis is the Emirate of Dubai, the thesis also considered the impact of regional (GCC) and international legislations and regulations (UN and FATF) on the policing of money laundering in Dubai. It is argued in this thesis that the major problem with policing of money laundering in Dubai is the lack of accountability of the AMLSCU that plays a leading role in the fight against money laundering. In addition, the information sharing amongst various government agencies and financial institutions is extremely poor. Where information pertaining to money laundering cases is shared, they are inconsistent and haphazard. Consequently, the government is facing problems to effectively combat money laundering in the Emirate. Other factors identified as major impediments are the lack of national database of money laundering cases which can be shared amongst the Police, the Customs Authority and the AMLSCU of Central Bank of UAE. The thesis also argues that poor training and lack of multi-agency/ interagency working is making the work of Dubai police difficult. Finally, it is argued that an a formal, integrated and intelligence-led information sharing model such as the UK National Intelligence Model (that draws on the importance of multi-agency working, information sharing and accountability) can serve as a more effective approach to the policing of money laundering in Dubai