Hello! It’s August 19, and we’re tracking today’s top stories: Russians withdraw billions from banks amid fears Putin could seize deposits, AI is accelerating elder fraud, Penn State frat pledges were made to cut and bag cocaine for college drug ring, U.S. Unseals 25-Count Indictment in $165M Crypto Case, and much more…

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Breaking News for FinCrime Professionals
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🎯 FEATURED STORY

Russians withdraw billions from banks amid fears Putin could seize deposits. Russians are increasingly feeling the effects of Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, now in its fifth year, as Kyiv continues to launch long-range drone strikes against Moscow’s oil refineries and other economic targets. Telegraph

🔥 TOP STORIES

AI is accelerating elder fraud. Their kids are reckoning with the fallout. USA Today

Penn State frat pledges were made to cut and bag cocaine for college drug ring AP

U.S. Unseals 25-Count Indictment in $165M Crypto Case OCCRP

Binance gave Moscow client details used to charge Russian over Ukraine donations Reuters

SEC proposes new crypto offering rules as Congress stalls on digital asset legislation Block

Treasury Seeks Public Comment on GENIUS Act Proposed Rulemaking U.S. Treasury Department

Russia is shipping explosives to Iran to bolster its missile and drone arsenal in U.S. war NBC News

EU to propose tougher sanctions on Russia this autumn Euronews

Banks accused of facilitating Ponzi schemes after missing warnings The Times

17 Iranians Charged With Conducting Massive Cyber Theft Campaign On Behalf Of The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps And Other Iranian Entities DOJ

IRS proposal would force nonprofits to disclose fraud or terrorism convictions of leaders CBS News

Colombian National Pleads Guilty to a Money Laundering Conspiracy DOJ

Austria's FMA fines crypto broker Bitpanda $81,000 in first published MiCA penalty Block

Ukraine urges EU sanctions on Rosatom over allegations of nuclear safety violations Politico

DOJ Rule Expands Fraud Division Powers, Restrains Criminal Chief Bloomberg

🚩 RUSSIA & CHINA

A Key Food Source Collapsed Off West Africa’s Coast as Chinese Ships Ground the Species Into Fishmeal OCCRP

The Powerful Chinese AI Model Experts Warned About Is Here Wired

Myanmar leader heads to Russia to deepen strategic ties AP

Trump crypto firm backs venture offering AI from restricted Chinese companies Reuters

Suspected China-Nexus Actor Exploits VMware vCenter Flaw, Deploys Babuk-Derived Ransomware Hacker News

🚀 SANCTIONS & TERROR

Venezuela seeks return of 31 tonnes of gold worth €4bn from Bank of England Euronews

Russia sanctions bill would give Trump broad tariff authority USA Today

Rubio announces sanctions on International Criminal Court president Hill

How U.S. sanctions are crushing Cuba's economy NBC News

Turkish ISIS convict deported from Netherlands resurfaced in Somalia after rebuilding jihadist ties in Turkey Nordic Monitor

Ministry of Interior arrests senior ISIS leader in Aleppo countryside SANA

200 arrested in Pakistan-backed militant crackdown Reuters

💸 CORRUPTION & FINANCIAL CRIME

Saudi Arabia tightens anti-crime oversight on UAE-bound bank transfers Reuters

Alejandro Betancourt, the under-investigation billionaire linking Delcy Rodríguez to Trump EL PAÍS

Ex-New Mexico lawmaker convicted in $1.15 million school bribery scheme Washington Times

Minnesota man honored as 'outstanding refugee' charged in Medicaid fraud case FOX

FBI seeks tips to find $100M Ponzi schemer who skipped bond in 2023 Detroit News

Mafia link feared in Sicilian grand master theft Reuters

Banks reach $86.4 million Mexican bond rigging settlement in Manhattan Reuters

🔐 CRYPTO & CYBER

Crypto hardware wallet owners face fresh security risks after recent spate of personal data thefts TechCrunch

Medusa ransomware tallies hundreds of new victims CyberScoop

How a bug in Coldcard’s code went unnoticed for years, leading to $100 million in hacked funds CoinDesk

Israel’s largest crypto broker Bits of Gold hit by data breach affecting 200,000 customers CoinDesk

Harmony plans pre-attack rollback after exploiter forged 3 trillion ONE tokens Block

🚚 TRAFFICKING

U.S.-Mexico Team Up to Seize Seven Tons of Cocaine in Pacific Operations Breitbart

Nigeria influencer arrested after seizure of cocaine worth $28m destined for the UK BBC

Inside secret police warehouse as Germany targets small boats gangs BBC

CBP San Diego Field Office seizes over $67 million in narcotics in July CBP

Over 50 arrested in North Texas World Cup human trafficking sting FOX

Illegal Alien Pleads Guilty to Transporting Aliens DOJ

“This is one of those cases in which the imagination is baffled by the facts.” —Adam Smith

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