A Rhode Island man has entered a guilty plea for his participation in an elaborate international money laundering scheme with connections to drug trafficking, as announced by the Acting United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts. The defendant, Agustin Villa, 61, acknowledged his role in the conspiracy on Wednesday, with U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley setting his sentencing for November 25, 2024.
Following a federal grand jury's superseding indictment in May 2023, Villa, along with 11 other individuals from various states including Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and California, was charged. The criminal network they were associated with was first spotted operating around greater Boston in 2021. At its helm was Jin Hua Zhang from Staten Island, New York, who, for a fee, laundered vast quantities of cash for drug dealers, as well as profits from other illicit enterprises. Over the span of a year, it was revealed that Zhang's outfit cleaned at least $25 million in ill-gotten gains, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Villa was implicated in the operation as a courier for a drug trafficking organization that employed Zhang's laundering services. On May 26, 2022, he was caught delivering over $75,000 in cash to a cooperating witness, which was subsequently converted to Tether, a form of cryptocurrency, and transferred to ring leader Zhang, less a commission. Funds funneled through the Zhang organization were traced to accounts as far-flung as Hong Kong, China, India, Cambodia, and Brazil. Law enforcement ultimately seized both cash and cryptocurrency linked to Zhang at the investigation's end.
The money laundering conspiracy charge against Villa carries a heavy penalty, with a possible sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a fine that could reach $500,000 or double the involved amount, whichever is higher. While these sentences will be meted out based on guidelines and statutes that inform criminal case judgements, Zhang has already pleaded guilty and awaits his sentencing, slated for January 15, 2024. The investigation into this case was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Boston Division, with Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Special Agent in Charge Jodi Cohen heading the announcement.
