The banking sector is providing training and IT resources to the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) – better known as the Hawks – to help investigators combat financial crime and money laundering.
The Digital and Financial Forensic Analysis Centre (DFAC) last week provided a review of its activities over the past year. The DFAC is a partnership between the Banking Association South Africa (BASA), the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC), and the Hawks.
SABRIC’s chief executive, Nischal Mewalall, said the Centre was established following “a direct request” from the Hawks to the banking sector.
“The purpose of the DFAC is to bolster South Africa’s capacity to investigate and prosecute financial crime, by making cutting-edge digital and financial forensic analysis capacity available to the Hawks,” Mewalall said.
The Centre provides:
- Advanced training for senior investigators in financial forensic analysis.
- Software and hardware – along with the necessary technical support – for use in the investigation of a broad spectrum of serious crime, including money laundering and terrorism funding.
Although BASA and SABRIC are the DPCI’s partners and have made these resources available, the Hawks are in control of their “investigation plan”. The banks have “no influence”, Mewalall said.
“Our view is that partnerships between business and government should not compromise the independence of either party; instead, it must allow responsible corporate citizens to contribute to building an effective public service that can help deliver prosperity for everyone.”
One of the reasons the banking sector responded to the Hawks’ request for assistance is the need to get South Africa off the Financial Action Task Force’s grey list.
“South Africa’s grey-listing by the FATF highlighted deficiencies in combating financial crime and money laundering. While South African banks largely comply with international standards and require no FATF-mandated reforms, they could not stand to one side when the county’s economic interests are being hampered,” Mewalall said.
The Centre offers a practical way for the banks to enhance law enforcement’s capacity while supporting the government efforts to exit the grey list, he said.
The Centre’s activities
The DFAC has 64 staff members (58 from the Hawks and six technical support staff) who are skilled in digital and financial forensics and data management. This team has access to a broader team of IT and data science experts.
One of the technologies at the Centre’s disposal is the ability to convert digital and hard-copy bank statements into an electronic analysis format.
“This dramatically reduces data-processing time and allows for the data to be analysed faster, and money flows to be detected more efficiently. More than 114 bank statements that span years, with millions of transactions, have already been processed using this technology. As a result, the Hawks are now leveraging the Centre’s capabilities, processing 147 cases and 910 exhibits to date. This has led to shorter investigation timelines and quicker prosecutorial decisions,” Mewalall said.
A specialised training curriculum covering digital and financial forensics has been developed. Sixty-eight DPCI members have been trained to date.
To ensure that the skills needed to carry out financial investigation are not concentrated in one area, the Centre has trained 782 law enforcement officials on how to analyse bank statements, “so that following the money becomes part of the investigative practice in South Africa”, Mewalall said.
Digital subpoenas for bank records
In November, the Centre launched the digital service of section 205 subpoenas, enabling the Hawks to obtain bank records electronically.
Section 205 of the Criminal Procedure Act makes it possible for a police officer to obtain a subpoena directing an individual or entity to produce documents or disclose information relevant to a criminal investigation.
The head of the DPCI, Lieutenant General Godfrey Lebeya, said digital subpoenas will assist in bringing DPCI investigators “closer to those they are seeking, and help ensure that the financial trail leads to the recovery of assets bought with money amassed from ill-gotten gains”.
Mewalall said digital subpoena project is “a significant milestone” in the modernisation and digital transformation of investigative procedures. “Most importantly, it reduces investigation timelines and facilitates faster prosecutorial decisions.”
The Hawks in Gauteng are connected to 11 banks via a secure communication network, enabling them to serve subpoenas electronically, Mewalall said. Banks can acknowledge receipt and respond to information requests through the platform, streamlining the process.
He said the Hawks have successfully served 10 subpoenas through the platform.
The DFAC aims to expand the platform to the Hawks in the other provinces in the coming year and eventually roll it out nationally for the South African Police Service.
