ACCUSED HEZBOLLAH MONEY LAUNDERER QUIETLY CUTS A $50m DEAL FOR SHORT SENTENCE

Kassim Tajideen

 If you read our recent article about the Lebanese businessman, Kassim Tajideen*, named as a Specially Designated National (SDN), he has entered a plea of guilty to Conspiracy to Launder Monetary Instruments. Tajideen is reportedly an "important financial contributor to Hezbollah", although his attorneys have contested that designation, and he was ultimately not charged with providing financial support to Hezbollah. After his attorneys objected, the Government reportedly removed all references to Hezbollah from a Superseding Indictment.

Obviously, the Government did not want to reveal material from ongoing investigations, or to expose itself to another Waked-type civil suit, testing the legal sufficiency of Tajideen's SDN sanction. Tajideen operated Hezbollah front companies all over Africa.

As you know, money laundering carries with it a maximum penalty of 20 years in Federal Prison, as well as a possible hefty fine. Tajideen has entered into a Plea Agreement admitting that he wired funds into the United States, as part of commercial transactions.

(1) He serves 60 months, with credit for time served to date. His Guidelines were closer to 10 years, but the Court could have applied enhancements, if his true status as a principal laundryman for Hezbollah came out at trial.
(2) He pays Fifty Million Dollars, in advance of sentencing.
(3) The Government agrees not to mention at sentencing that the defendant was a supporter of, or associated with Hezbollah.
(4)  The Government will not oppose any action by counsel for Tajideen, who also has Belgian citizenship, to transfer where he will serve his time to Belgium**, provided that he serves the full 5 year sentence, as computed by the Bureau of Prisons, with the appropriate credit for pretrial confinement.

His sentencing  was recently postponed, after the defendant's counsel advised that his client had not yet raised all the funds; a new date has been set. 
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*Aliases of the defendant: KASIM TAJI AL-DIN, KASIM TAYMUDIN, KASSIN MOHAMMAD TAJDDINE,QASIM TAJ AL-DIN, BIG BOSS, BIG HAJ, HAJ KASSIN.
** The defendant is also shown as a citizen of Sierra Leone.