U.S., Britain target gold smuggling scheme in Zimbabwe with sanctions

Dec. 9 (UPI) -- The United States and Britain announced sanctions targeting a transnational gold smuggling and money launder network in Zimbabwe on Monday,

Officials said the worldwide gold scheme, led by Kenyan national Kamlesh Pattni, has robbed the Zimbabwe government and its citizens of natural resources. The sanctions come on International Anti-Corruption Day, recognized by the United Nations Convention Against Corruption.

The Treasury said Pattni and his supporters have used bribery, hidden their operation and illegally taken advantage of government loopholes through corrupt government officials to benefit their alleged fraud.

"Across the globe, when corrupt actors like Pattni choose to exploit openings in governance structures to benefit themselves and their cronies, communities suffer and public trust is undermined," Bradley Smith, the Treasury's acting under-secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement.

"Corruption respects no borders and its consequences are felt worldwide. As we mark International Anti-Corruption Day, the United States reaffirms our commitment to using all available tools to hold these individuals to account for their scheme."

The U.S. Treasury on Monday said it sanctioned Pattini and 27 others connected to his scheme, while Britain said in a statement that it blacklisted Pattini and his wife and brother-in-law, "who have a long history of involvement in his network of companies."

Pattni has been on law enforcement's radar since the 1990s during the Goldenberg scandal in Kenya and he eventually fled to Zimbabwe. With the help of then-President Robert Mugabe, he rebuilt his scheme of illegally profiting from the exports of gold and diamonds from Zimbabwe.

According to public reporting, Pattni had organized a network that would return to Zimbabwe with cash from sales of national resources and overreport the amount being brought back. The network would receive compensation for the over-reported cash and bribe government officials to receive protection.

Treasury officials state that his network has spread to multiple nations and has recently looked to establish new operations to resource-rich countries.

The Treasury said Pattni protected his profits through a network of front companies, frontmen, facilitators, couriers and other supporters.

A full list of those sanctioned can be found here.