Interpol Washington Makes Huge Organized Crime Bust

WASHINGTON, DC — Interpol Washington has just busted a multi-million-dollar international fraud and money laundering scheme by an organized crime network, the U.S. Justice Department announced in a statement.

Interpol partnered with U.S. and international law enforcement agencies to indict 19 individuals, 16 of whom were arrested Tuesday and Wednesday in an operation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the statement notes.

One of the remaining three people was already in custody, and the other two are at large. The arrests were made in New York, Los Angeles, Hungary, Bulgaria, Germany, and Israel, and more than 50 agents were involved.

The investigation began back in 2015.

“These indictments and today’s arrests followed an international investigation into an interconnected web of money launderers, fraudsters and individuals that aided and abetted their criminal activities,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Channing D. Phillips said in the statement. “The defendants in the cases being unsealed today are accused of taking part in schemes in the United States and abroad, costing victims millions of dollars. The investigation demonstrates the importance of international cooperation amongst law enforcement in combatting fraud and money laundering on a global basis.”

Image via U.S. Justice Department