Article 29 of the Saudi Anti-Money Laundering Law

This article encourages the perpetrator of a money laundering offense to cooperate with the authorities, and allows a reduction of the penalty for him under specific conditions.

Conditions for the reduction:

1. The person reporting is one of the perpetrators of the offense.
2. He reports to the competent authorities either:
   • the offense itself, before the authorities learn of it, or
   • its other perpetrators.
3. His report leads to the seizure of the perpetrators of the offense, or of the funds, instrumentalities or proceeds of the crime.

The amount of the reduction: The article refers to Article 30, which allows reducing the penalties in Article 26, according to the circumstances provided for by law, so that they become imprisonment for a period of no less than one year and not exceeding 7 years, or a fine not exceeding SAR 3,000,000, or both.

Two things are to be noted:

• The reduction is permissive ("may"), meaning it is not an automatic right of the person reporting.
• The article speaks of reducing the penalty, and does not provide for exemption from it.

Article 30 also addresses the case of someone who, after the authorities learn of the offense, takes the initiative to report information that could not have been obtained in another way, to help prevent another money laundering offense or limit its effects, or to identify or prosecute the other perpetrators, or to obtain evidence, or to deprive organized criminal groups of funds they have no right to or prevent them from controlling them.

Because the decision to report and its consequences is a delicate matter, anyone considering it should consult a lawyer who specializes in criminal cases.