ST. LUCIE COUNTY \u2014 Two Port St. Lucie residents were among 15 people arrested Oct. 21 after an indictment of more than 20 members of what federal officials described as a “transnational criminal organization charged with conspiring to commit wire fraud and money laundering,\u201d according to a U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office in California.<\/p>\n
Carlos Zamora and Veronica Puentes, both 40 and identified as being from Port St. Lucie, were among 10 in California, Texas and Florida charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Federal court records also show Zamora and Puentes resided in Miami-Dade County, each managing a different shell company.<\/p>\n
Five additional California residents, including a federal inmate, were charged with various crimes related to fraud and money laundering.<\/p>\n
The investigation involved what was described as a \u201csophisticated transnational fraud organization\u201d that operated out of the United States and a number of countries in Latin America, ultimately resulting in the arrests of 15 people \u201cresponsible for stealing more than $30 million from mostly elderly American victims,\u201d a U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office news release states.<\/p>\n
Records show the alleged conspiracy started \u201cnot later than in or around April 2019\u201d and continued until this year.<\/p>\n
According to the news release, organization members contacted victims by phone calls and emails using the false identities of government officials and attorneys.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany of the victims owned or previously owned timeshares and were told that they were entitled to receive money related to legal settlements concerning their timeshares,\u201d the release states. \u201cThe organization used various tactics to extract money from the victims.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shell companies, fictitious business names and financial accounts were alleged to be used to launder the money.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe defendants moved money from victims to co-conspirators through a series of layered financial transactions, designed to obscure the true nature of the transactions,\u201d the release states. \u201cThe defendants then transferred fraud proceeds to bank accounts controlled by the organization\u2019s members located in the United States, Latin America, and elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n
Python removal: Gov. DeSantis announces new initiative to help rid Everglades of invasive Burmese pythons<\/a><\/p>\n Prison sentence: Man sentenced to prison in animal cruelty, dog deaths case in St. Lucie County<\/a><\/p>\n According to federal records, the defendants and others are accused of using the proceeds to benefit themselves and the \u201cNuestra Familia and Norteno criminal organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n Investigators identified more than 372 victims with losses surpassing $30 million.<\/p>\n Agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service and police departments in California investigated the case.<\/p>\n Will Greenlee<\/a>\u00a0is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X\u00a0@OffTheBeatTweet<\/a>\u00a0or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at\u00a0will.greenlee@tcpalm.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Port St. Lucie residents charged in fed fraud, money laundering case<\/a><\/p>\n