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But Garry Clement, the chief of anti-money laundering consultancy Clement Advisory Group and the former director of the RCMP’s proceeds of crime program, says if the person who recorded the video also provided the alleged drugs and then sold the footage for profit, then both the payment and the video could be seized.

“You can’t profit from criminal activity. … [U.S. authorities] would be in a good position to go in for forfeiture of the money,” he said.

If the person who filmed the alleged footage just happened to be at the party, these laws likely don’t apply, Mr. Clement added.

However, these particular risks lay with the seller of the video and the recipient of the cash, not Gawker, he said.

Still, a transaction over $10,000 — whether from bank to bank, or wire transfer — will catch the attention of the authorities.

Under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, records must be kept for transactions over that threshold, said FINTRAC spokesman Peter Lamey.

The law over 10 years has tried to remove the anonymity and clandestine transactions and the ability to conduct them

“The law over 10 years has tried to remove the anonymity and clandestine transactions and the ability to conduct them,” he said. “So, if you’re carrying out transfers and transactions, there’s a paper trail at the financial institutions. If you’re moving across the border, that generates a paper trail as well.”

The transaction, if flagged, would still go through but the organization would look at it closely after the fact, he said.

“If someone is involved in criminal activity and has suspicious transactions already associated with them, or ongoing investigations… That would be a good starting point for looking at transactions in terms of looking at transactions of interest to police.”

That is, assuming that the exchange is made electronically.

It is possible that the money could be brought across the border in cash or pre-loaded VISA cards in sums below the $10,000 threshold.

This activity, called “structuring” of a transaction, isn’t illegal but is a signal of other criminal activities.

“Structuring is considered a money-laundering technique, it’s not a criminal activity. But it’s an indicator to a bank or a casino or a credit union that you’re dealing with something that may be linked to money laundering.”

National Post