Federal Court of Cassation: Anticipated Forfeiture

In the case “Ramos, Néstor Marcelo s/recurso de casación” (CFP 3017/2013/TO5/CFC89), the Federal Court No. 4 in Criminal Matters considered that there were insufficient elements to carry out the early forfeiture of assets, despite the requests the Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) and the Argentine Tax Authority (AFIP) made.

The Court interpreted that, although the reports the UIF prepared suggested that the funds were linked to illicit activities, they had not established a clear and direct link with the commission of money laundering crimes. According to the Court, this precluded the application of the anticipated forfeiture measure.

The decision was issued in the framework of an investigation on Mr. Nestor Marcelo Ramos, who had passed away and was suspected of having been involved in money laundering activities through offshore companies.

The UIF and AFIP appealed the decision. In this context, Chamber I of the Federal Court of Cassation admitted AFIP’s appeal and annulled the appealed decision.

Chamber I underlined that the appealed ruling lacked sufficient grounds to require a direct and specific link between the assets and the unlawful activities, which implied an improper interpretation of the rule. Furthermore, it added that the forfeiture under article 305 of the Criminal Code does not require absolute certainty as to the illicit origin of the relevant assets. Rather, the Court emphasized that only a general determination of prior criminal activity is required, which—in accordance with the circumstances of the case—makes it possible to exclude other possible origins of the assets.