Bank Accused of Preventing Staff from Reporting Suspicious Transactions

US federal prosecutors have charged Puerto Rico-based Blue Ocean International Bank LLC (in liquidation) with conspiracy to wilfully fail to report suspicious transactions under the Bank Secrecy Act.

The core allegation matching your query appears in specialist reporting:

• The bank “obstructed the duties and responsibilities” of its own compliance team by refusing them access to transaction records and preventing them from filing suspicious activity reports (SARs).

This is drawn from recent specialist coverage of a Criminal Information filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida (Miami)*.

The bank is already in liquidation, so the practical impact of a corporate criminal charge is limited to residual assets, any ongoing civil claims, and reputational/regulatory consequences for associated individuals or related entities.

No public information was found confirming pleas, resolutions, individual charges against executives, or the specific customer transactions that triggered the SAR failures.

What is reported

• Charge and court:
• One count of conspiracy to wilfully fail to report suspicious transactions (Bank Secrecy Act / SAR violations). Filed on or about 17 July 2026 in the Southern District of Florida.
• The bank:
• Blue Ocean International Bank LLC, a Puerto Rican international bank that is now in liquidation.
• It was ultimately controlled by French businessman Gilles Rollet via a Cayman Islands holding company (references include Blue Ocean International Holding LLC / IRC Holding Limited).
• The obstruction allegation:
• US prosecutors specifically allege that the bank obstructed its own compliance team’s duties and responsibilities, refused the team access to transaction records, and prevented the filing of SARs.
• Reporting also notes that a compliance officer was left reviewing paper copies of records in some instances.
• Context tags in coverage:
• Specialist outlets flag connections or relevance to
• PDVSA (Venezuela’s state oil company),
• Venezuela-related activity,
• Money-laundering risks, and
• Prior regulatory issues involving Rollet in Dubai (including a fine and prohibition linked to La Tresorerie Ltd.).

Warning

• Available public reporting is limited; full details of the charging document and any supporting affidavit sit behind paywalls or court access systems, and no free official Department of Justice press release was located in open web searches as of 23 July 2026.
• The facts presented in this post are those that can be validated from the sources listed at the end.

Caveats on the information

• Open-source reporting is thin and largely secondary. The most detailed accounts (Global Investigations Review / Lexology by Grace Propheta, and MLex by Samuel Rubenfeld) are paywalled; free summaries and the OffshoreAlert document notice provide the skeleton above.
• I have not independently reviewed the full Criminal Information or any sealed exhibits. Claims beyond the charged count and the quoted obstruction language should be treated as provisional until primary court documents or an official government statement are examined. Prior civil litigation involving the bank (e.g., a 2019 Puerto Rico case and a 2025 complaint alleging fraud/unjust enrichment) exists but is separate from this criminal matter.

Sources

• https://globalinvestigationsreview.com/article/puerto-rican-bank-charged-in-miami-willfully-failing-file-sars
• https://www.lexology.com/pro/content/puerto-rican-bank-charged-in-miami-for-willfully-failing-to-file-sars
• https://www.offshorealert.com/puerto-ricos-cayman-owned-blue-ocean-international-bank-criminally-charged-in-u-s/
• https://www.offshorealert.com/usa-v-blue-ocean-international-bank-llc-criminal-information-bank-secrecy-act/
• https://www.mlex.com/mlex/financial-crime/articles/2503442/liquidated-puerto-rican-bank-charged-in-us-with-suspicious-activity-violations
• https://www.mlex.com/mlex/case_files/6a5e512ea9a7e493e38fbb1a
• Related background (Rollet / prior Dubai matters, not the 2026 US charge itself):
• https://365343652932-web-server-storage.s3.eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/files/9216/4275/9376/20220112_Rollet_DFSA_FMT_Decision.pdf
•  Mr Rollet’s application is dismissed. We impose a fine of USD 175, 000. We direct that there be a restriction and a prohibition in the terms sought by the DFSA.
• In effect we uphold the Decision Notice and order Mr Rollet to pay fifty per cent of the DFSA’s costs of the appeal.