ABSTRACT
International trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances has generated huge amounts of capital for its initiators and organizers. These drug cartels and trafficking groups are organized and structured to function efficiently within national economies, as well as at the international level. The profits derived from their illegal activities are either integrated into the legal economy or are used in corrupt and criminal ways to enhance such activities. Governments, therefore, when agreeing upon the United Nations Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances of 1988,[1] decided to introduce measures to detect and punish money-laundering activities, thereby hitting drug traffickers where it would hurt them the most.
