Ohio man sentenced to prison for money laundering

Date: Sept. 17, 2025

Contact: [email protected]

Charleston, WV - Jack Paskin of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, was sentenced on Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2025, to nine months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for money laundering. Paskin participated in the laundering of approximately $337,000 in proceeds from the illegal sale of controlled substances.

According to court documents and statements made in court, from in or about mid-summer 2019 to on or about August 31, 2020, Paskin facilitated the shipment of wholesale quantities of marijuana to Mullens, West Virginia. Paskin admitted that the shipments were directed to addresses provided by Merrick Rice, who then obtained the marijuana packages following their delivery. Paskin further admitted that he knew Rice sold the marijuana to other individuals who then distributed it within the Southern District of West Virginia.

Proceeds from Rice's sale of the marijuana were deposited into bank accounts that Paskin individually controlled or had signatory authority over. On Feb. 24, 2021, Paskin withdrew $30,000 in cash from one of the bank accounts he knew held proceeds from Rice's marijuana sales. Paskin admitted that he knew that the $30,000 and the other deposited funds represented proceeds from illegal drug sales in the Southern District of West Virginia.

Rice of Mullens, and Miranda Aliff of Rock Creek, both pleaded guilty on May 7, 2024, to structuring transactions with one or more domestic financial institutions. Rice and Aliff admitted to structuring bank deposits of the illicit drug proceeds totaling $228,000 to evade currency transaction reporting requirements. On Oct. 21, 2024, Rice was sentenced to one year and three months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and Aliff was sentenced to five years of federal probation.

Acting United States Attorney Lisa G. Johnston made the announcement and commended the investigative work of the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Chief United States District Judge Frank W. Volk imposed the sentence. Assistant United States Attorney Jonathan T. Storage prosecuted the case.

IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement 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 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.