The advocacy group, The Sentry has called on the US government to investigate illicit money flows revealed in its latest corruption report on South Sudan.

It says the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network and the Department of Justice should investigate the ways in which the proceeds of the corruption apparent in the Letters of Credits program were laundered out of South Sudan.

The Sentry said consideration should be given to applying network sanctions to any groups of companies connected to family members of the political elites in South Sudan, that are found to be used for bad means.

The government spokesperson, Michael Makuei has dismissed the report.

Yesterday, The Sentry released a new report on South Sudan, detailing how nearly one billion US dollars was stolen in a massive scam involving banks in Qatar and Kenya.

It said 993 million US dollars were stolen in a massive bank credit scam that left devastating, deadly impacts on children and communities across South Sudan.

The report titled “Cash Grab: How a Billion-Dollar Credit Scam Robbed South Sudan of Fuel, Food, and Medicine”, the Sentry revealed that Qatar National Bank, and CfC Stanbic, provided letters of credit in exchange for projected oil revenues in South Sudan.

The report says massive credit lines were turned into an opportunity to steal by corrupt leaders and their cronies, with the government of South Sudan left on the hook to pay back the loaned money.

The U.S-based advocacy group said the nearly one billion US dollars, officially meant to deliver fuel, food, and medicine across South Sudan, disappeared into a maze of international shell companies that never provided any goods or services.

It said since the transactions identified in the report involve the use of US dollars, the Joe Biden administration, therefore, has the authority to seek information from financial institutions and foreign counterparts whose jurisdictions may have been involved in laundering the proceeds of corruption.

The information, according to the group, can form the basis for potential further action, including the review of transactions with regional correspondents, QNB, and CfC Stanbic to identify potential illicit financial flows.

It also called on the U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to initiate information sharing and reporting under Bank Secrecy Act for organizations and individuals listed in the report.

The Sentry encouraged the US government to identify which companies and individuals listed in its report and connected to family members and close associates of the political elite remain operational.

The advocacy group is an investigative and policy organization that seeks to disable multinational predatory networks that benefit from violent conflict, repression, and kleptocracy.

It aims to alter the distorted incentive structures that continually undermine peace and good governance.