Alan Joseph, Money Laundering, Massachusetts 2024

Lancaster Man Convicted of Money Laundering and Operating an Unlawful Money Transmission Business

BOSTON – A Lancaster, Mass. man was convicted on November 22, 2024 following a five-day jury trial for his involvement in an unlicensed money transmission business that exchanged cash for Bitcoin for an individual who represented to be involved in unlawful trafficking in counterfeit goods.

Alan Joseph, 36, was convicted of one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business and three counts of money laundering. U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman scheduled sentencing for February 24, 2025.

Between August 2020 and February 2021, Joseph engaged in at least four financial transactions where he converted cash to Bitcoin in connection with what Joseph believed to be trafficking in counterfeit goods, which is illegal under federal law. Bitcoin is a form of virtual currency, or cryptocurrency, that has no physical form and is traded exclusively by electronic means.

Joseph sought to promote and conceal the nature of such illegal activity. For instance, on October 28, 2020, Joseph converted about $25,000 in cash to Bitcoin for the undercover agent. During this meeting, the undercover agent represented to Joseph that the money Joseph was converting was from “rich housewives” who purchased “fake” items.

“Mr. Joseph’s conduct made him a critical cog in criminal enterprises, willingly converting illicit cash into cryptocurrency to help his customers conceal their tracks,” said United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “This conviction sends a clear message: those who exploit emerging technologies like cryptocurrency to facilitate illegal activity will be held accountable. Our office, alongside our federal and local partners, will continue to disrupt these schemes and ensure that the integrity of our financial systems is upheld.”

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. It was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nathaniel R. Barber and Michael R. Jenkins.

Joseph was charged by criminal complaint and arrested in February 2021 and later indicted by a federal grand jury in March 2021.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ma/pr/lancaster-man-convicted-money-laundering-and-operating-unlawful-money-transmission