Uruguayan Man Pleads Guilty to Agreeing to Move Money into the U.S. to Circumvent U.S. Sanctions Relating to Venezuelan Officials

A Uruguayan man pleaded guilty today to agreeing to use an unlicensed money services business to circumvent U.S. sanctions relating to Venezuela by transferring nearly $100,000 from the Dominican Republic into a U.S. bank account.

According to court documents, Irazmar Carbajal De Jesus, 60, agreed to transfer approximately $99,500 delivered in cash in the Dominican Republic to a specified bank account in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. The agents told the defendant's partner that the funds were from a sanctioned person from the Venezuela government who needed help moving them to the United States.

Carbajal and his partner advised that the fee would be 20 percent for this service, which included creating fake invoices to justify the transactions to the banks and the use of several accounts to transmit the funds. Carbajal referred to the funds in coded language, identifying them as a "boy who needs to be taken to school."

Carbajal pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. He is scheduled to be sentenced on June 12 and faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Brett Skiles of the FBI Miami Division made the announcement.

The FBI International Corruption Unit in Miami investigated the case.

Trial Attorney Barbara Levy of the Criminal Division's Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Nalina Sombuntham for the Southern District of Florida are prosecuting the case.

The Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section's (MNF) mission is to take the profit out of crime, eliminate drug cartels, and protect the U.S. financial system. MNF pursues criminal prosecutions and criminal and civil asset recovery actions involving: financial facilitators who launder profits for criminals; financial institutions and their officers and employees whose actions threaten the U.S. financial system and financial institutions; international money launderers who support transnational organized crime; and the top command and control of international drug trafficking organizations.

MNF's International Unit investigates and prosecutes cross-border money laundering schemes involving transnational criminal organizations, cartels, foreign official corruption and related money laundering affecting the U.S. financial system and prosecutes criminal cases and civil forfeiture matters to recover the proceeds of those crimes.