Money Laundering
What is Money Laundering?
Money Laundering is a term that applies to any financial activity where the proceeds or money that is received or handled comes from some form of illegal activity. Increasingly, these charges are being used as a tool by prosecutors to pile on additional charges against anyone who receives or transfers money or items of value that are proceeds of illegal activity or which can be traced to some kind of illegal activity.
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Attorney Sam Rabin • 305-358-1064 • E-mail
Money Laundering, as a crime, is relatively new. It first became a crime when Congress passed the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1986, and the terms of that federal statute (18 USC §1956) have now been adopted in one form or another as a crime by almost all 50 States allowing State prosecutors to separately impose criminal sanctions for any kind of financial crime where the proceeds originate from some form of specified unlawful activity.
Specified unlawful activity includes all crimes related to theft or larceny, prostitution, illegal gambling, pornography, embezzlement and drug dealing. Stated simply, if the money was derived from any form of illegal activity, anyone who handles the money by either receiving it, depositing it, investing it or just transferring it could be charged with money laundering in addition to the underlying crime which produces the ill-gotten proceeds.
Many people mistakenly believe that in order to be guilty of money laundering that they have to somehow “change the character” of the money — turning dirty money into clean money. In other words, taking illegally obtained cash and turning it into a clean check or buying property, stocks, gold or jewelry with dirty money in an effort to sanitize it. Nothing could be farther from the truth. All that is required to be guilty of money laundering is to either receive or transfer the money that comes from some kind of criminal activity.
For example, people who engaged in mortgage fraud, bank fraud or securities fraud who receive or transfer funds which were derived from that kind of criminal activity are also guilty of money laundering.
Examples of Money Laundering
Examples of criminal activity which could lead to a money laundering charge are any one or more of the following:
- Medicare fraud committed by a physician, medical services provider or a patient who participates in the fraud
- Drug dealing of any kind, including trafficking in diverted pharmaceutical drugs
- Any kind of financial fraud including:
- Bank fraud
- Real estate fraud
- Mortgage fraud
- Mail fraud or wire fraud
- Insurance Fraud
- State or Federal tax evasion or tax fraud
- Any kind of racketeering activity which can encompass a huge range of unlawful activity including:
- an act or threat involving murder, kidnapping, gambling, arson, robbery, bribery, extortion, dealing in obscene matter or pornographic material, or dealing in any kind of a controlled substance or illegal drug
- Sports bribery
- Theft from inter-state shipments
- Immigration or passport fraud
- Obstruction of justice
- Witness tampering
- Sexual exploitation of children or of any person
- Dealing in stolen property
- Software piracy
- Music Piracy (illegally trafficking in downloaded music from the Internet)
- Trafficking in sound recordings and music videos of live musical performances
- Unlawful duplication and sale of copyrighted videos or movies
- Trafficking in goods or services bearing counterfeit marks (like fake Gucci handbags)
- Trafficking in contraband cigarettes
- Violation of currency reporting regulations including the structuring of financial transactions or bank deposits to avoid filling out IRS forms
- Trafficking in or smuggling or harboring of aliens
- Collection of unlawful debts
The list goes on and on but the point should be obvious. Any kind of financial dealing, regardless of whether you personally profited from any of the above described criminal conduct, can lead to a money laundering charge.
Possible Penalties for Money Laundering
These offenses are serious and usually carry a maximum jail sentence of from anywhere between ten (10) to twenty (20) years in prison depending upon the amount of money involved. Additionally, money laundering charges usually bring forfeiture actions in tandem with the criminal charges which seek to recoup amounts as substitute assets for the laundered proceeds which may place legal or clean money or assets, including real estate or other legitimate investments at risk.
You Need an Experienced Criminal Defense Lawyer
Money laundering is a sophisticated criminal charge requiring expertise on the part of your criminal defense lawyer. Sam Rabin brings over 30 years of direct experience in dealing with these kinds of sophisticated and complicated financial crimes to the table. The mere fact that you may have handled “dirty money” could give rise to serious criminal charges but the good news is that there are very specific defenses that can be used to defend against the unwitting involvement in the handling of this kind of money.
It takes knowledge and experience to know how to deal with these sophisticated allegations of criminal conduct and only the kind of expertise gained from years of experience in dealing with this class of crimes can be utilized on your behalf when the time comes to confront or deal with a prosecutor who threatens to bring these serious charges.
Sam Rabin and the lawyers in his firm have the kind of experience that you require to effectively defend against these charges. If a defense can be found to exist, you can count on Sam Rabin and Associates to find and employ that defense on your behalf.
If the facts are such that the evidence of your involvement is either overwhelming or completely indefensible, then you absolutely require an attorney who is trained on finding and striking the best deal possible for you. Only a lawyer who has a reputation of standing up and fighting for his clients can effectively bargain for his client. Sam Rabin brings that kind of reputation and character to the table when he sits down and meets with a prosecutor on your behalf.
If you believe that you may be looking at a money laundering charge because of some kind of activity in which you played a role, even a minor role, you must know where you stand. In this arena, knowledge is power. Your initial consultation is always free and completely confidential.
Don’t wait until it is too late. Call Sam Rabin at (305) 358-1064 for your initial consultation with no obligation. Discretion and complete confidentiality is guaranteed. Mr. Rabin and his team handle money laundering cases in the Federal Courts across the nation and in the State Courts of all 50 States. Sam Rabin will guide you through the criminal justice system with compassion and sensitivity.
