Prosecuting money laundering in Tanzania: legal and practical challenges.

This study looks at the concept on money laundering and prosecution of the offence in Tanzania. The focus of the study is prosecution of money laundering, seeking to identify legal and practical challenges that hinder successful prosecution of money laundering. It makes a critical analysis of the legal framework on money laundering, especially the domestic framework; and examines the procedures for investigation and prosecution of money laundering in Tanzania, in order to identify the challenges. The study also looks at the money laundering cases that have been prosecuted so far before courts of law in Tanzania, using the Dar es Salaam Region as a point of reference. The study argues that several legal and practical challenges exist and hinder successful and expeditious prosecution of money laundering. Lack of adequate jurisprudence on money laundering appears to be the biggest challenge, as magistrates have little to guide them in their judgements, owing to the fact that the law was only enacted in 2006 and is complex and may be transnational. Other challenges include lack of sufficient knowledge and training and corruption within the criminal justice system. The study also provides some relevant recommendations to improve prosecution of money laundering in Tanzania, including capacity building for all law enforcement officials and prosecutors involved in investigation and prosecution of money laundering and Tanzania to borrow from jurisprudence of other countries in Africa, including the neighbouring Malawi.