MIAMI MOBILE TELEPHONE EXPORTER ACQUITTED OF MONEY LAUNDERING IN BMPE CASE

Company found innocent of money laundering

A small Miami cellphone company, and its principal, were acquitted, in US District Court in Miami, of money laundering conspiracy, in a case where they were accused of participating in the Colombian Black Market Peso Exchange. It is rare, in Miami, that a Federal money laundering case does not end up with a guilty verdict, especially where the prosecution alleges BMPE activity.

The defendants were Cell Tech Electronics, Inc., and Diego Campestrini. The action was originally filed in San Juan, in the District of Puerto Rico, but the Court transferred the case, stating that it was for both the convenience of the parties, and the interests of justice.

They allegedly accepted funds, from unknown third party bank accounts that belonged to companies that were not their clients, to pay for mobile telephones and accessories, for export. The US Attorney also accused the defendants of co mingling drug trafficking proceeds with retail sales. A forfeiture count, in the amount of $1.8m, was part of the indictment.

The jury apparently thought that the prosecution failed to prove their case, beyond a reasonable doubt.
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* Case No.: 14-cr-20050-KMW (SD FL).