Laundering Process Research Articles

Microbial Colonization, Biofilm Formation, and Malodour of Washing Machine Surfaces and Fabrics and the Evolution of Detergents in Response to Consumer Demands and Environmental Concerns

Bacterial attachment and biofilm formation are associated with the contamination and fouling at several locations in a washing machine, which is a particularly complex environment made from a range of metal, polymer, and rubber components. Microorganisms also adhere to different types of clothing fibres during the laundering process as well as a range of sweat, skin particles, and other components. This can result in fouling of both washing machine surfaces and clothes and the production of malodours. This review gives an introduction into washing machine use and surfaces and discusses how biofilm production confers survival properties to the microorganisms. Microbial growth on washing machines and textiles is also discussed, as is their potential to produce volatiles. Changes in consumer attitudes with an emphasis on laundering and an overview regarding changes that have occurred in laundry habits are reviewed. Since it has been suggested that such changes have increased the risk of microorganisms surviving the laundering process, an understanding of the interactions of the microorganisms with the surface components alongside the production of sustainable detergents to meet consumer demands are needed to enhance the efficacy of new antimicrobial cleaning agents in these complex and dynamic environments.

Implementing The Anti-Money Laundering Law: Optimizing Asset Recovery in Corruption Cases in Indonesia

Corruption is still a severe problem in Indonesia. In 2022, the Attorney General Office of the Republic of Indonesia alone succeeded in handling 405 of 597 corruption cases in 2022, with a state loss of 39.207 trillion out of a total of 42.747 trillion. When the state loss is combined with the state economic loss, which refers to the indirect financial impact on the state due to corruption, the number will be up to IDR142 trillion. However, the total asset recovery through fines and state loss compensation was only IDR 8.9 trillion. Thus, it only recovers about 12% of state losses due to corruption. One of the efforts to recover state losses is applying the law on money laundering because its main objective is to pursue the proceeds of a crime, including corruption. This paper discusses how the money laundering law will be more optimal in recovering state losses due to corruption and its application in several cases. The method used in this study is normative legal research, especially case studies relating to implementing a money laundering law on corruption cases. From the study, it can be concluded that the anti-money laundering law was not optimally applied in asset recovery in corruption cases. Only in corruption, which indicates an actual state loss, can the anti-money laundering law be applied. Moreover, there should also be an indication that the money laundering process follows corruption. Applying the Anti-Money Laundering Law, whether in the investigation, prosecution, or trial of criminal acts of corruption, has not been optimal, so it has not supported efforts to recover state losses.

Assessing the Impact of Pre-Soaking to Enhance Laundering Efficacy of Firefighter Turnout Gear.

Firefighters are exposed to hazardous chemicals at fire scenes, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) among many others, which pose significant health risks. Current laundering practices are ineffective at removing persistent contaminants from turnout gear, necessitating further research to optimize cleaning methods. This study explores the impact of presoaking prior to the laundering process and the factors that can affect its effectiveness, including the presoaking duration and detergent concentration, in PAH removal when laundering. For this, contaminated fabric swatches were subjected to various presoaking durations (1, 3, and 12 h) and detergent concentrations (99:1 and 90:10 water-to-detergent ratios) before undergoing bench-scale washing. The cleaning efficacy was assessed for 16 PAH compounds, including both low-molecular-weight (LMW) PAHs and high-molecular-weight (HMW) PAHs. Moreover, the removal mechanisms of PAHs from turnout gear were fundamentally explained using partition coefficients and standard affinities with different parameters during washing. The results demonstrate that 3 h and 12 h of presoaking lead to 2.8 and 4.3 times greater HMW PAH removal, respectively. After 12 h of presoaking in a 90:10 water-to-detergent ratio, 97% of the LMW PAHs and 78% of the HMW PAHs were removed, compared to only an 11% removal of the HMW PAHs with a 99:1 ratio. Additionally, direct washing with a 90:10 ratio achieved comparable efficacy to that of presoaking with the same water-to-detergent ratio, indicating the crucial role of detergent concentration during laundering. These findings offer valuable insights for optimizing firefighter safety practices, emphasizing the role of presoaking and the appropriate methods to perform presoaking to mitigate firefighters' occupational exposure risks to toxic substances and ensure gear reliability.

A Novel Money Laundering Prediction Model Based on a Dynamic Graph Convolutional Neural Network and Long Short-Term Memory

Money laundering is an illicit activity that seeks to conceal the nature and origins of criminal proceeds, posing a substantial threat to the national economy, the political order, and social stability. To scientifically and reasonably predict money laundering risks, this paper focuses on the “layering” stage of the money laundering process in the field of supervised learning for money laundering fraud prediction. A money laundering and fraud prediction model based on deep learning, referred to as MDGC-LSTM, is proposed. The model combines the use of a dynamic graph convolutional network (MDGC) and a long short-term memory (LSTM) network to efficiently identify illegal money laundering activities within financial transactions. MDGC-LSTM constructs dynamic graph snapshots with symmetrical spatiotemporal structures based on transaction information, representing transaction nodes and currency flows as graph nodes and edges, respectively, and effectively captures the relationships between temporal and spatial structures, thus achieving the dynamic prediction of fraudulent transactions. The experimental results demonstrate that compared with traditional algorithms and other deep learning models, MDGC-LSTM achieves significant advantages in comprehensive spatiotemporal feature modeling. Specifically, based on the Elliptic dataset, MDGC-LSTM improves the Macro-F1 score by 0.25 compared to that of the anti-money laundering fraud prediction model currently considered optimal.

Know your customer: Unravelling the challenges

Regulated financial institutions must conduct regular know-your-customer (KYC) reviews on corporate clients to prevent money laundering and the financing of terrorism. However, national add-on requirements and regulatory discrepancies challenge the vision of a unified Europe, hindering the creation of an efficient, digital and hence scalable pan-European anti-money laundering (AML) process for all stakeholders who are active beyond their national borders. The current inability of banks to introduce efficient but robust pan- European KYC processes delays customers’ access to finance and other banking products, and indirectly impedes the free movement of goods, services and capital. The European Commission plans to introduce the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR) to harmonise and strengthen the EU AML framework. This could reduce national divergences, allowing for a level playing field across the internal market and consistent application of provisions throughout the EU. Unfortunately, harmonised regulation alone does not solve the current issues faced by financial institutions. While a harmonised rulebook provides certainty related to ‘what’ needs to be done, significant pan-European discrepancies remain related to ‘how’ the requirements can be fulfilled. For example, the EU has directed all member states to establish commercial and beneficial ownership registers, but left the design of such registers under the authority of the member state. Consequently, banks active on a pan-European level have to adjust their processes based on the type and content of the national register. Also, the definition of what constitutes a politically exposed person (PEP) varies significantly across the EU, as do the enhanced due diligence requirements which are triggered upon the identification of such a PEP. This paper provides suggestions on how EU member states can help the financial industry in a joint effort to prevent money laundering and combat the financing of terrorism more effectively. The objective of this discussion is to create a streamlined and unified approach to KYC processes across Europe.

India and Anti Money Laundering Measures: A Critical Study of Legislation & Its Enforcement

Money laundering is the process that criminals use to erase the connection between the crime and the money concealing the criminal source of the funds. The money laundering process has three stages viz., (a) placement, (b) layering and (c) integration. In the initial placement stage, the launderer produces its legal profits into financial system by breaking up large amounts of cash into unsuspicious smaller sums. In the layering stage, the launderer engages in a series of conversions or movements of the funds to distance those from their original source. After successful processing of criminal profits through first two phases, the launderer moves those to integration stage, so that the funds enter the legitimate economy. Money laundering has a very bad impact not only on the national financial infrastructure but it also crumbles the international financial system. This paper aims to analyse the current state of money laundering laws in India, offer a critical assessment of the enforcement machinery, investigate whether the laws as written correspond to the actual situation on the ground, and determine the amount of work needed to implement the necessary changes so that the legislation can be effectively enforced.

An Improve the Onboarding Process in Trade Finance Applications Using Blockchain Technology

Today, challenges in Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) processes include inefficiencies, data silos, and the risk of fraudulent activities. Integrating blockchain technology offers a transformative solution to these issues. Blockchain's decentralized and tamper-resistant nature ensures a single, verifiable source of truth for customer information, reducing data discrepancies across institutions. Smart contracts can automate AML compliance checks, ensuring real-time monitoring and rapid response to suspicious activities. The immutability of blockchain records enhances auditability, facilitating regulatory compliance. Furthermore, the secure and transparent nature of blockchain instills trust among stakeholders, fostering collaboration in combating financial crimes. By leveraging blockchain in KYC and AML processes, the financial industry can achieve enhanced efficiency, reduced fraud, and strengthened regulatory adherence.

Notary Efforts in the Prevention of Money Laundering

In addition to having rights and obligations as stipulated in the Notary Office Law, notaries are also given additional obligations in the context of preventing and eradicating money laundering, namely as reporting party and must report deeds that tend to be a process of money laundering. However, there is a legal issue of conflicting norms because as we know that a Notary is obliged to maintain the confidentiality of the deeds of service users. So that the purpose of this legal scientific research article is to find out whether all deeds must be reported by a Notary in the prevention of Money Laundering Crimes and how the position of a Notary as a reporter is seen from the point of view of the principle of confidentiality in his position. The results of this legal scientific research article state that first, Deeds that must be reported by a Notary to the authorized official are the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center, namely Sale and Purchase Agreements, Deeds of Sale and Purchase of Shares, Deed of Sale and Purchase of Assets, Deed of Establishment of a Limited Liability Company, Deed of Binding of Sale and Purchase, Deed of Establishment of Foundations, Deed of Establishment of Cooperatives, also Authorization of Selling and Authorization of Directors, which are in essence closely related to the crime of money laundering. Second, the principle or principle of secrecy as stipulated in Article 16 paragraph (1) letter f does not have absolute force, because there is a norm which explains that "unless the law determines otherwise". Notaries are expected to be able to identify authentic deeds that have a high risk or tendency of money laundering and for deeds that have allegations of money laundering. Notaries are expected not to hesitate to report to Indonesian Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center or INTRAC to prevent money laundering.

DAMPAK TINDAK PIDANA PENCUCIAN UANG TERHADAP EKONOMI MAKRO

Money laundering is an illegal method of generating large sums of money from criminal activities, such as drug trafficking, corruption or other criminal activities. The process of money laundering generally goes through three stages of activity, namely the placement stage, the distribution stage and the collection stage with the aim of making it appear as if it comes from a legitimate source, in order to make it look clean. The emergence of losses that are reflected in the presence of victims is the adverse impact of money laundering activities which today in fact money laundering does not only have a direct impact on the individual who is harmed but the effect will be felt on national and even global economic stability. The characteristics of the crime of money laundering must be known in advance before developing a strategy to prevent and then deal with the crime of money laundering.

Consideration of the peculiarities of analyzing financial transactions subject to financial monitoring in times of war

The object of the research is the financial transactions that are subject to financial monitoring. Today, financial monitoring is an integral part of the activities of Ukrainian banks, especially during the period of martial law, since it is through banks that the process of laundering proceeds from crime most often occurs.
 The article discusses the peculiarities of analyzing financial transactions subject to financial monitoring in wartime. In particular, the author outlines the trends in the banking system. Given the current challenges, in particular, martial law in Ukraine, the author analyzes the dynamics of submission by banks of reports on financial transactions subject to financial monitoring, including in terms of financial monitoring features, and investigates the factors that affect their number. A forecast of the volume of reports is made. The author analyzes the recommendations of the State Financial Monitoring Service of Ukraine (SFMS), which contribute to the improvement of customer service processes in banks in order to counteract money laundering and terrorist financing. The authors also provide the main tools used for money laundering, terrorist financing, etc. during the war. The author describes the impact of money laundering and terrorist financing on the financial security of the state.
 The military aggression of the russian federation against Ukraine has had a significant impact on money laundering, terrorist financing, and the financing of the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Due to untimely/non-operational or inefficient/poor quality analysis and appropriate response of banks to financial transactions that are subject to financial monitoring, this direction in the activities of banks requires special attention. In the current situation, there are new challenges and threats that have signs of criminal acts and fraud:
 – financing of war and terrorism/separatism; laundering the proceeds of corruption;
 – embezzlement of budget funds and funds of state enterprises;
 – laundering of proceeds from crimes related to fraudulent acquisition of funds of citizens and legal entities by deception, including under the guise of assistance to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
 The authors propose to improve the legislative and regulatory acts in the field of financial monitoring and to introduce penalties for bank employees for improper performance of their duties at the legislative level. The authors also focus on the proper automation of processes in banks.

AML in Kazakhstan: Progress, Challenges and Future Prospects

This academic article aims to analyze the current state and dynamics of developing the Anti-Money Laundering (AML) process in the Republic of Kazakhstan. The article reviews the regulatory framework for AML/CFT in Kazakhstan and discusses the government's efforts to combat money laundering in the country. The article also examines the role of financial institutions in implementing AML/CFT measures and the challenges faced by them. Based on the study and analysis of the national legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the current problems of the formation and development of a system of counteraction to the legalization of criminal incomes are considered, and as a result, necessary measures will help to realize a necessary level of counteraction in the country. Also, the attention is focused on new money-laundering techniques such as using digital assets, which are actively used by criminal networks nowadays. In addition, the article highlights the recent developments and initiatives taken by Kazakhstan to strengthen its AML/CFT regime.

Strategic management, scenario analysis and competitive advantage analysis: New opportunities for anti-money laundering system reform

The article identifies and mathematically substantiates vectors of reforming the financial monitoring system based on the synergistic approach in the cross-country context by developing scenarios by selecting internal and external factors that stimulate money laundering. The key external and internal factors of the money laundering process intensification are indicated. Competitive advantages of the anti-money laundering processes, the achievement of which is possible in terms of key external and internal factors for activation of money laundering process are formed. The relationship between the key internal and external factors of money laundering intensification and competitive advantages by building a binary characteristic matrix is formed. The synergy effect made by the mutual influence of simultaneously acting internal and external factors – a quantitative feature of the further strategy of the financial monitoring system reforming in terms of cross-country analysis is calculated. An economic-mathematical model for evaluating and interpreting strategy for improving the financial monitoring system in terms of cross-country context based on integer optimization is developed. In the article, there is calculation of the number of competitive advantages received by each observed country, without considering the possible synergy effect of mutual influence of simultaneously acting internal and external factors on each other. Moreover, there is quantitative assessment of the synergy effect made by the emergence of additional competitive advantages due to a certain combination of simultaneous influence made by external and internal factors of the money laundering intensification. The “ideal” situation of the possibility of gaining all possible competitive advantages in reforming the financial monitoring system in terms of cross-country context by overcoming internal and external factors stimulating the money laundering is studied. The results of the cross-country analysis form a basis for the further formalization of the limits for quantitative evaluation of the developed strategies through a uniform distribution.

Money laundering as a negative economic factor in the European Unio

Aim: Among the money laundering methods, virtual methods stood out, which can be considered more dynamic and less traceable than traditional money laundering methods. One of the great challenges of our time is money laundering in the developing cyberspace. Due to the dynamic development of money laundering methods and their importance in cyberspace, their influence on the national economy is also significant. The primary goal of the study is to explore the European Union and Hungarian legislative background of anti-money laundering, as well as its effectiveness in defense.Methodology: The Authors carried out a systematic review of the relevant international and Hungarian literature related to money laundering. After the literature review, as the main tool of protection against money laundering, the legal regulation was examined. Regulatory deficiencies have been identified that may form the basis of future legal regulations.Findings: As a result of the research, it can be summarized that the legislation in force in the European Union and Hungary is not ready to regulate Internet money laundering methods, regulations and legislation are always one step behind money laundering committed by virtual methods. In order to effectively defend against money laundering, changing the legal background and developing monitoring activities are considered particularly important tasks.Value: In Hungary and the territory of the European Union, the criminal law tools prove to be few in the fight against money laundering, especially against crimes committed on the Internet. The regulations and some proposals of the European Union and Hungary do not provide a solution to the majority of potential risks and loopholes arising from virtual currencies. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify the exact legal status of virtual currencies. The study highlights the shortcomings of the current legal situation, and this initiative draws attention to the current situation of certain virtual currency service providers receiving an operating license, which also requires compliance with anti-money laundering rules, so that e-money and various payment services are also stricter they could come under control. The Authors review the process of money laundering, provide an international perspective on the most frequently used money laundering methods, and explain the importance of virtual money laundering and possible defense methods.

Status of groundwater and river water quality around the location of illegal gold mining activities in Lantung District, Sumbawa

The Lantung area is one of the places on Sumbawa Island with a large gold deposit. One of the activities of the Lantung people that has the potential to damage the environment is separating gold from mercury. This study aimed to examine the activity of the gold laundering process, and the level of contamination of groundwater and river water due to gold processing from amalgamation by mercury (Hg<sup>+</sup>) waste. In this study, sampling was carried out for each location, namely two samples of wastewater, six samples of river water, and two samples of groundwater, which were then tested in the laboratory on the parameters of mercury and TSS. At the same time, pH was measured in the field. Furthermore, from the survey results, it was found that the use of mercury was ±150-250 mL at each gold processing location. The results showed that all samples from wastewater (tailings), groundwater and river water were contaminated with mercury with levels exceeding the acceptable quality standards. Furthermore, the status of water quality using the Pollution Index (IP) method shows that wastewater is light to moderately polluted, groundwater is lightly polluted, and river water is also lightly to moderately polluted.

Effects of Recycled Fiber Usage and Laundering Processes on the Performance Properties of Knitted Fabrics

Effects of Recycled Fiber Usage and Laundering Processes on the Performance Properties of Knitted Fabrics

Potential for Microbial Cross Contamination of Laundry from Public Washing Machines

Although clothes washing machines remove dirt, microorganisms are not reliably removed by modern cold-water machine-washing practices. Microbial bioburden on clothing originates from the wearer’s skin, the environment (indoor and outdoor), and the washing machine itself. While most clothing microbes are commensals, microbes causing odors and opportunistic pathogens may also be present. Understanding the extent of microbial transfer from washing machines to clothes may inform strategies for odor control and for mitigating the transmission of microbes through the laundering process. This study was designed to quantify and identify bacteria/fungi transferred from laundromat machines to sentinel cotton washcloths under standard cold-water conditions. Bacterial 16S rRNA and fungal ITS sequencing enabled identification of microorganisms in the washcloths following laundering. Total plate-based enumeration of viable microorganisms also was performed, using growth media appropriate for bacteria and fungi. Opportunistic human bacterial pathogens, including Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Enterobacter spp., were recovered. The fungal bioburden was ~two-fold lower than the bacterial bioburden. Most sequences recovered were assigned to non-pathogenic fungi, such as those from genera Malassezia and Ascomycota. These results suggest that public washing machines represent a source of non-pathogenic and pathogenic microbial contamination of laundered garments.

Juridical Review of Money Laundering Crimes committed by the President Director of PT. Asabri

Background: This study aims to find out and analyze about the juridical review of money laundering crimes and find out and analyze about liability in cases of money laundering crimes committed by the president director of PT. ASABRI.
 
 Objective: This study aims to find out and analyze the juridical review of money laundering crimes and find out and analyze about liability in cases of money laundering crimes committed by the president director of PT. ASABRI.
 
 Methods: This research belongs to the normative type of research. So that it can be known that Dan the elements of not criminal money laundering are perpetrators, acts (financial or financial transactions) with the intention of hiding or disguising the origin of wealth from its illegitimate form (illegal) as if it were legal property.
 
 Results: Money Laundering as a crime has the characteristic that this crime is not a single crime but a double crime. The point is that the criminal act of money laundering is a form of crime committed either by a person and/or corporation by deliberately placing, transferring, spending, paying for the plunge, entrusting, taking out of the country, changing the form, exchanging for currency or securities or other acts of property that he knows or reasonably suspects is the result of non-criminal proceedings.
 
 Conslusion: Based on the explanation above, it can be concluded that the money laundering process has three stages, namely the Placement or placing Stage, the second is the Layering or Separating Stage, and the last is the Integration Stage or the use of wealth that has appeared legitimate.
 Keywords: Criminal Acts, Money Laundering, Asabri

The Impact of Criminal Policy on Money Laundering Against the Resilience of the Law

Differences in the authority of investigators over money laundering crimes committed by members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces lead to disharmony of norms, thus creating polemics in the law enforcement process, especially in efforts to eradicate money laundering. Currently, there is an expansion of investigative competence based on the Decision of the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Indonesia, which states that predicate criminal investigators are officials or bodies authorized by laws and regulations to conduct investigations. Violations committed by members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces against the crime of money laundering should be under the jurisdiction of the Military Court. This study aims to determine the development and impact of legal policies related to members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces who commit criminal acts in the jurisdiction of the Military Court I-03 Padang. The analysis of this research uses a descriptive qualitative approach by using primary and secondary data. The results indicate that the competence of military courts is vulnerable to discontinuing the legal process of money laundering. Military courts should also be given the authority to try Indonesian National Armed Forces members who commit money laundering crimes. Investigation of The Crime of Money Laundering committed by members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces in the ius constituendum must be formulated more firmly in the Money Laundering Law. Thus, the Indonesian National Army members who violate the entered in categorization of General Crimes or non-military will be subject to the general justice system, and in the investigation carried out by investigators in the general court as described in the provisions in accordance with the limitative theory.

Are Laundry Balls a Sustainable Washing Option for Consumers? Investigating the Effect of Laundry Balls on Microfiber Pollution through the Lens of Cradle-to-Cradle Design Model

Laundry balls are promoted as a sustainable washing option because they do not contain chemical elements, unlike laundry detergent, which causes water pollution. However, little research exists to showcase the impact of laundry balls on microfiber pollution during home laundering. Using a cradle-to-cradle framework, this study aimed to investigate the effect of laundry balls on microfiber shedding during the home laundering process of synthetic clothing with different washing cycles. A factorial experimental design, consisting of 4 (washing options) × 3 (washing cycles) × 2 (repetitions) was used for this study. The ANOVA test was applied using SAS software. The findings revealed that different laundry balls including a ceramic laundry ball, lint remover laundry ball, and scrubbing laundry ball, did not reduce microfiber shedding of synthetic clothing. In fact, the use of the ceramic laundry ball accelerated microfiber shedding. It also presented the effects of different washing cycles on microfiber shedding of synthetic clothing. The study findings point towards the need to educate consumers about choosing the right washing options to minimize microfiber shedding. The findings also have implications for the industry and researchers to develop more sustainable washing options to reduce negative environmental effects by controlling microfiber pollution in home laundering.

Novel Treatment to Immobilize and Use Textiles Microfibers Retained in Polymeric Filters through Their Incorporation in Composite Materials.

Microplastics (MPs, size < 5 mm) are among the most environmentally challenging pollutants. Their continuous and cumulative inflow or generation in the environment is what makes them drastically problematic. These pollutants can come from a wide variety of sources; hence, they are potential vectors that pose extensive risks to environmental and human health. Microfibers (MFs) are one type of MPs. Among the most well-known types of MFs are those detached from textile articles from household laundering or industrial processes. Currently, there are many ways to retain the MFs detached from textile articles. However, as far we know, there are no methods of valorizing the retained MFs. As such, we propose a novel and sustainable treatment method to immobilize MFs in a polymeric matrix, turning them into a composite. To determine the mechanical properties of the expected composites, different proportions of polyester MFs were mixed with low-density polyethylene, which is the material proposed for the immobilization of MFs. The results show that the optimum manufacturing composition was 10% (v/v) polyester MFs in the polymeric matrix. This composition improved some of the tensile mechanical properties of the polymeric matrix. Once the composites are obtained, these can be used for different purposes.