APOLOGISTS IGNORE CAYMAN ISLANDS' LACK OF LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTION AGAINST FINANCIAL CRIMINALS

The recent article, written by the Public Relations staff at Cayman Finance, in response to the classification issued by the Tax Justice Network Financial Secrecy Index, naming Cayman as the Most Secretive Jurisdiction in 2020, completely disregards the fact that Cayman law enforcement and regulatory agencies have a long and deplorable history of failing to bring financial criminals operating in the Caymans to justice. Specifically, the last eleven major financial frauds perpetrated there did not result in a single arrest or indictment of the fraudsters, or of any significant recovery of the lost investment capital by local law enforcement or the courts.

Regular readers of this blog will recall that we extensively covered the theft of hundreds of millions of dollars of funds, owned by elderly Canadian retirees and pensioners. The fraudsters, Cayman residents who used an offshore Canadian bank and an unlicensed investment company to accomplish their criminal goals, are well known in the media as the Cayman Gang of Four. None of them were ever arrested for those crimes by the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service, nor sanctioned by the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority. Additionally, CIMA improperly disclosed information submitted by victims to one of the fraudsters, who was personal friend of one of the regulators.

It appears that the fear of negative publicity, which could drive away new foreign investors, trumps the Rule of Law in the Cayman Islands. Criminal investigations, while often initiated there, do not result in criminal charges against fraudsters, especially if they are Cayman professionals or residents. Foreign investors should avoid the Cayman Islands for, should they become a victim of financial crime, there will be no assistance rendered to them by the authorities.