Other Criminal Defense Topics Attorney in Chicago, Illinois
What is Money Laundering
What is Money Laundering
More In This Category
View Transcript
Money laundering sounds funny, but it’s basically washing money. That’s why it’s called laundering. Laundering money. Washing money that came from illegal gains and now through the state of washing the money or cleaning the money, it becomes legitimate. Many times you would see money laundering counts when people are prosecuted for drug conspiracies. Because a drug dealer sells drugs, then receives the money, and then they need to send it back to the originating source country. And in order to sell it back to the originating source country, they transport it or they take the money and exchange it for other goods, such as gold, to send it back to the originating country. And that by itself is called money laundering because you are transporting the money from one spot to the next as if it was legitimate.
Chicago, IL criminal defense attorney Gal Pissetzky talks about what defines money laundering by law. In the realm of financial crimes, money laundering, although the term may sound whimsical, involves the process of cleansing illicitly obtained funds. The term “laundering” signifies the act of washing money, transforming it from proceeds of illegal activities into seemingly legitimate assets. Money laundering charges often surface in cases related to drug conspiracies.
Typically, in drug-related prosecutions, a scenario unfolds where a drug dealer initially sells illicit substances, receives the proceeds, and then engages in activities to send the money back to the source country. This process might involve transporting the money or converting it into other commodities like gold, facilitating its return to the originating country. The act of moving money under the guise of legitimacy is termed money laundering, as it involves the strategic transportation of funds to create an appearance of legality.
