Wives, girlfriends and money laundering

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the complicity of wives/girlfriends of a criminal if she benefits from the proceeds of the criminal's illicit activities.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents analysis of 62 investigations into organised crime through interviews.

Findings

Although spouses/wives benefit from the criminal proceeds of their husbands, they are hardly ever prosecuted on this basis alone. Only if they are actively involved in money laundering, are they more likely to be prosecuted.

Research limitations/implications

Analyzing police data has certain drawbacks. Socio‐economic data are often non‐existent.

Practical implications

Relatively, few of the wives/girlfriends were tried in connection with these crimes. This paper indicates several possible reasons for this.

Originality/value

This paper points out a logical consequence of the legal interpretation of money laundering.

Citation

Soudijn, M.R.J. (2010), "Wives, girlfriends and money laundering", Journal of Money Laundering Control, Vol. 13 No. 4, pp. 405-416. https://doi.org/10.1108/13685201011083902