The ACAMS AML Professional of the Year Award recognizes a professional who has made strong contributions to the field, such as leading a successful money laundering investigations enforcing and /or increasing awareness of key laws or regulations, implementing an innovative AML/Sanctions/Financial Crime training method, creating or revamping an AML or related program or process, and detecting a money laundering scheme, among many other related activities. The winner is selected by the ACAMS Staff.

This year’s finalists include Darin Jarret, Vice President and BSA/AML Compliance Officer, Zions Bank; Meryl Lutsky, Chief, Money Laundering Investigations Unit New York State Crime Proceeds Strike Force, New York Attorney General’s Office; and Daniel Wager, Supervisor Special Agent ICE/DHS, Director, NY HIFCA.

Darrin Jarret – AML/BSA Champion
Jarret received a nod for his innovation in implementing a new annual training strategy for his bank after a review in which examiners requested to see more face-to-face BSA/AML training. Darrin not only developed a board-approved annual strategy that included in-person regional trainings for more than 1,000 retail employees as well as an all-employee video that was posted on the bank’s employee intranet page, he also found ways to instill the importance of BSA/AML compliance into the company’s culture. Since then, examiners have praised Zions for one of the best BSA/AML Training Programs they have seen.

Meryl Lutsky – A Life’s Calling.
Lustky was devoted to the prevention of fraud, corruption and money laundering even before she started working in the field when at the age of 19, she and her college roommate launched their own investigation into a local drug ring near campus that resulted in law enforcement performing a clean sweep of the park. More recently, with the New York Attorney General’s Office, Lutsky led an investigation of a fraud ring whose crimes included identity theft, money laundering, bank fraud, and wire fraud. Twenty members of the ring have been indicted and losses from the ring’s criminal activities currently total more than $25 million. She has also created a task force consisting of federal and state prosecutors, law enforcement, and regulators, and continues to be actively involved in educating and training financial institutions on how to strengthen their financial fraud controls.

Daniel Wager – The Full Spectrum.
Wager received a nomination on the basis of his extensive, multi-faceted career in which he served the Department of Homeland Security – Immigration and Customs Enforcement (DHS-ICE), the U.S. Customs Service, and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations. His experience spans the conduct of investigations into traditional organized crime, fraud, narcotics, insider trading, arms exports, national security and terrorism. Wager is a veteran of U.S. Army Special Operations and Military Intelligence, with combat service in Panama and Iraq and has received commendations from the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Central Intelligence Agency for his work in national security investigations. 

The winner will be recognized as ACAMS AML Professional of the Year in front of their AML peers during the awards presentation portion at the 9th Annual conference and will receive special recognition on the ACAMS website and in our ACAMS Today magazine and will also receive an award specially designed to celebrate the achievements of that unique individual.