A leading fraud examiner yesterday called for strengthened cooperation between the government, police force and local businesses in curbing the growing black market economy for fradulent certificates and other documents.
Speaking with Guardian Business, Training Director of the Bahamas chapter of the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) Kendrick Christie suggested that bureaucratic hurdles might be one of the driving forces behind the rising demand for fraudulent documents and called on the government to reassess relevant processes.
"I think we really need to educate people more. I don't condone fraud, but I think we have to look at some of our processes. For instance, the process of getting a passport is difficult even for a Bahamian.
"I think we need to reexamine some of the things that we require because we make it difficult," he said, highlighting the challenges or misconceptions that the country's immigrant and non-English speaking community may face in obtaining legal documents or certificates.
Speaking at an ACFE seminar on combating fraud yesterday, Christie warned of the shifting nature of the country's black market inventory and called for more extensive training initiatives within businesses and a stronger collaborative effort between the public and private sectors, given the volume of anecdotal evidence received by the ACFE.
"We're seeing a growth in the trade of less physical items, such as medical certificates, drivers licenses, and so we know of schemes of people colluding to treat these things like inventory. It's not the traditional part of a vehicle, DVD, or office supply, but it's still something of value to someone else," said Christie.
Christie pointed out that adequately addressing the problem required much more comprehensive statistics surrounding such cases of fraud in The Bahamas. While Christie acknowledged that it was not possible to eliminate fraud in the country, he believed that The Bahamas was potentially lagging behind international jurisdictions.
"We're not unlike any other country that has this issue. I think we may be a little further back in a concerted effort. I think companies [need] to work with the government and the police force - we probably have to do a lot more of a collective effort.
"I think certain entities try to keep abreast of [fraudsters]. I think companies need to work in tandem with the commercial crimes unit. I still think that there's a way for companies to get more cognizant of the issue and really crack down on fraud," he said.
Click here to read more at The Nassau Guardian
