Department of Justice Reveals Seizure of $14.9 Million from Cartel-Linked Money Laundering Operation

DETROIT - On Friday, the Department of Justice unsealed a civil case aiming to forfeit over $14.9 million seized from an international drug money laundering scheme, United States Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. announced.

The lawsuit-originally filed in 2024-details the seizure of the funds and alleges a complex pattern of trade-based drug money laundering. Trade-based money laundering involves depositing U.S. cash drug proceeds into American bank accounts-using real or shell companies-which can then transfer the wealth to Colombia or elsewhere by delivering products or services that can be sold in local currencies.

The suit alleges that the $14.9 million seized came from tracking drug money deposits into the bank accounts of companies with connections to international commerce. These include a successful Latin American musician whose accountant said the cash deposits were related to concerts in Colombia, and many import-export businesses. The investigation into this scheme continues.

Gorgon was joined in the announcement by Joseph O. Dixon, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration-Detroit.

"Drug trafficking and money laundering go hand-in-hand," U.S. Attorney Gorgon said. "Cartels need money to poison our American communities. We will eliminate these threats and protect our country."

"The cartel and it criminal networks are fueled by profit. Seizing their drug proceeds strikes at the core of their poisonous operations, the DEA and our partners will be relentless in pursuing these bad actors and will hold them accountable for the violence, destruction, and misery they cause. No distance will shield them," said Special Agent in Charge Dixon.

The lawsuit is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime, human and drug trafficking.