Manhattan - Two
men were arrested in Miami and charged Wednesday with operating an illegal
money-transmission business that allowed companies in Venezuela and other South
American countries to move $100 million into the US.
Luis Diaz Jr.,
74, and Luis Javier Diaz, 49, both of Miami, are charged in Manhattan federal
court with operating an unlicensed money transmission business and
international money laundering. They were scheduled to appear Wednesday in
court in South Florida.
Prosecutors
claim the two men ran a “shadow bank” outside normal financial channels, using
a company they owned in Doral, Florida, to move money, allowing an unnamed
“large Venezuelan consortium of construction companies” to put money in the
bank accounts of employees, government officials and others. The scheme netted
millions of dollars for the two Diazes, according to the government.
Prosecutors
claim the two men used phony invoices to hide the fact they were illegally
moving money into the US If convicted, they face as much as 20 years on the
most serious counts against them.