In mid-March 2021, Spanish police seized a submarine capable of transporting up to two tons of drugs.  During the drug raids across Spain, police arrested 52 persons, seized  significant quantities of cocaine and hashish, and dismantled a drug lab.[1]

On March 18, 2021, at the Tenth U.K.-Caribbean Forum, the ministers’ meeting resulted in pledges for continued cooperation in international enforcement initiatives, especially helping CARICOM members meet the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) international standards and cybercrime security and enforcement.  At the end of the meeting, a communique was issued[1] as well as an action plan.[2]

                On March 22, 2021, the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Charles Sexton’s crew repatriated 17 Cuban migrants to Cuba. They had interdicted them on March 18, approximately 54 miles south of Key West, and were brought aboard due to safety of life at sea issues.[1]  Meanwhile, the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs called for the U.S. to abide by its commitment to the Joint Declaration on migration signed by the two governments on January 12, 2017, to prevent the tragic incidents resulting from irregular migration.[2]

                On March 24, 2021, the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ)  issued a summary of its 2020 achievements, including a number of international enforcement ones.[1]

On March 20, 2021, the United States government obtained custody of Mun Chol Myong after Malaysia extradited him to face U.S. money laundering charges.  He was the first North Korean extradited to the U.S. after a Malaysian court denied the argument that the U.S. charges were politically motivated.[1]

On March 18, 2021, the U.S. Attorney in Seattle announced the indictment of Till Kottmann, 21, for computer intrusion and identity and data theft crimes from 2019 to the present.  Initially, the U.S. charged Kottmann, aka “deletescape” and “Tillie crimew” in September 2020.  The U.S. Department of Justice has notified Kottmann of the indictment.  Kottmann remains for now in Lucerne, Switzerland.[1]

Ex-Nigerian governor James Ibori and his associates allegedly laundered 160 million in Euros in the years he was in office. They used the stolen money to purchase luxurious cars, a jet plane, and property in the U.K. and Nigeria. The U.K. announced it would return $5.8 million that the ex-Nigerian Governor stole; this comes as part of the deal between the two countries. This is the first time such action was taken under a 2016 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that both countries signed to combat the corruption that is plaguing the region.^[1] Ibori’s case is just one of many in Nigeria. Laundered and stolen assets exasperate poverty and corruption in any given country. The asset recovery process is long-drawn-out and often leaves the impacted country with less than a fraction of the stolen assets. This is especially true when stolen assets are recovered in the U.K., where it is increasingly difficult to return the assets to the affected country.

In December 2020, the U.S. Congress enacted the United States-Northern Triangle Enhanced Engagement Act (USNTEEA)[1] as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act for 2021.

This year Denmark, Germany, and Belgium have all brought criminal investigations against foreign enablers in the cum-ex trading cases.

On March 17, 2021, the Financial Action Task Force announced the start of a new project “to study and mitigate the unintended consequences resulting from the incorrect implementation of the FATF Standards.”[1]