Fifteen defendants charged in operation targeting conversion of bulk U.S. cash proceeds from drug sales into cryptocurrency for Mexican cartels

Date: Nov. 20, 2024

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MIAMI - A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida returned a superseding indictment yesterday charging nine individuals for conspiring to launder U.S. currency into cryptocurrency on behalf of drug cartels in Mexico and Colombia and for the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.

These recent charges are the result of a law enforcement operation that uncovered a network of black market cryptocurrency launderers and unlicensed money transmitters. The same investigation has resulted in the conviction of three individuals and charges against an additional three individuals.

According to the superseding indictment, between 2020 and mid-2023, nine defendants and their co-conspirators worked together to pick up bulk cash, derived from drug sales in various cities throughout the United States. They would then coordinate to exchange the cash for cryptocurrency that was sent to wallets controlled by the defendants or their co-conspirators. The cryptocurrency would then be converted into cash and delivered to cartel leaders in Mexico and Colombia.

As alleged in court documents, Nilson Sneyder Vasquez Duarte, a/k/a "Sobri," a/k/a "Sobrino," (Duarte), and co-conspirators coordinated the delivery of cash and cryptocurrency to black market cryptocurrency exchangers, including to Hernan Horacio Richard Samper (Samper), Maria Eugenia Landeros Rosas, a/k/a "Yeni," (Landeros), Raimundo Carlos Rodriguez Huter (Huter), Mayccol Hejeile Morales (Morales), and Hernan Julian Calvo Bueno (Calvo Bueno). Sergio Fernando Vargas Alvarez (Alvarez), Juan Carlos Riano Muentes (Riano), Jesus Ivan Rincon Martinez (Rincon), Morales, and Calvo Bueno also acted as couriers, physically transporting the cash between U.S. cities.

All nine defendants are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of the operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business. Duarte, Landeros, Huter, Rincon, Morales, Calvo Bueno, and Alvarez are also charged with substantive money laundering counts.

U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Acting Special Agent in Charge Stefanie Hipkins of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Anthony Salisbury of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Miami, and Sheriff Gregory Tony of the Broward Sheriff's Office (BSO) made the announcement.

IRS-CI, HIS, and BSO are investigating the case under the El Dorado Task Force.

Senior Litigation Counsel Michael N. Berger and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nalina Sombuntham for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul Schwartz and Jeffrey Kaplan prosecuted prior related cases. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jorge R. Delgado is handling asset forfeiture.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.

IRS-CI is the criminal investigative arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money-laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a more than a 90 percent federal conviction rate. The agency has 20 field offices located across the U.S. and 12 attaché posts abroad.