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MS-13 Gang Charged with Laundering Illicit Funds Through US Financial Institutions

By Valentina Pasquali

Federal prosecutors in Ohio charged 10 suspected members of international street gang Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, with extorting funds and laundering the proceeds through Western Union, MoneyGram, Sigue and other U.S. firms over a 6-year period. According to the 15-page indictment unsealed Tuesday against the El Salvador-based group, the defendants allegedly used physical force or threats of violence to compel their victims to either hand over or wire the funds across the United States and to El Salvador, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio said. The transactions were designed to conceal the source of funds, which...

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