Young people face consequences of money mules actions says Louth's Ó Murchú
Louth Sinn Féin TD Ruairí Ó Murchú focused on the issue of money mules, the proceeds of drug dealing and laundering during an oral question to the Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan
Money mules are targeting young people to put huge amounts of cash through their bank accounts and leaving people to face the consequences through court action, Louth Sinn Féin TD Ruairí Ó Murchú has said.
The Dundalk TD focused on the issue of money mules, the proceeds of drug dealing and laundering during an oral question to the Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan in the Dáil last week.
Deputy Ó Murchú said: “I am sure that, no more than me, he has been contacted by many people, particularly parents, where kids have been stupid, got messages on the Internet and fallen stupidly into being a money mule, or even other scenarios where they have fallen in with their friends and been used and abused to a degree.
“In some cases, it is small numbers but still significant, but in others, huge sums have been put through people's accounts.
Minister O’Callaghan said Deputy Ó Murchú’s question was ‘opportune’ as the previous week, the government launched Ireland's third national risk assessment on money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing.
Minister O’Callaghan said: “If somebody comes into a shop with €10,000 in cash and they want to buy a handbag, piece of clothing or something like that, it should trigger immediate concern. “On the issue of money mules. People need to be aware that if something looks too good to be true, it generally is not true. They need to be really careful and cautious, because they will find themselves before the courts getting a conviction for doing something that is very serious”.
The Louth TD said: “It is about getting the message out there that as much as somebody might stupidly fall into this, the ramifications for their future life can be serious, as they should be. It is not only kids who are involved in this.
“We are talking about some highly sophisticated operations. There is huge money in the drugs business. We know the huge impact it has on individuals and communities.
“We have to get serious. We need to make sure we have the capacity to deal with everything from businesses to small operations that can build into big operations, where people were taking control of people's bank accounts, putting huge money through them and leaving them open to prosecution and whatever else”.