Money Laundering Tied to Quarter Horse Sales
Description:
Among the 15 individuals arrested in connection with an alleged drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy in the Southwest are three men accused of using a horse sale to evade income reporting requirements.
A June 17 release from U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas Richard Durbin Jr. said Raymundo Villarreal Jr., 23, and Jesus Andrade, 37, both of Mission, Texas; and Denis Winn, 54, of Tecumseh, Okla., are charged with one count of conspiracy to structure transactions to evade reporting requirements. The indictment alleges that beginning in 2011, the defendants purchased American Quarter Horses from an auction house in Oklahoma using drug proceeds collected in San Antonio.
The indictment specifically identifies six occasions in October and November 2011, where payments were made for horses. Authorities said each payment was under $10,000 to avoid having to complete an IRS form 8300, which would have alerted the IRS and possibly raised suspicion about the source of the funds.
Federal, state, and local authorities said the alleged drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy occurred in South Texas, Central Texas, and Oklahoma. The announcement was made by Durbin, United States Attorney Kenneth Magidson, Southern District of Texas; Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge William Cotter, San Antonio Division; and, Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent in Charge Joseph M. Arabit, Houston Division.
Others charged in connection with the alleged drug trafficking and money laundering ring include 11 from Mission, Texas: Juan Villarrela-Arelis, 43; Reymundo Villarreal-Arelis, 45; Jose Luis Villarreal-Gonzalez, 32; Manuel Villarreal-Garcia, 40; Norma Leticia Villarreal-Garcia, 47; Corina Flores-Alanis, 36; Jovanna Villarreal-Diaz, 37; Gilberto Villarreal-Villarreal, 27; Juan Antonio Villarreal, 24; Jose Luis Villarreal-Arelis, 57; and Nancy Isela Villarreal-Gonzalez, 51. Also charged is Sergio Guadalupe Adame-Ochoa, 65, of McAllen, Texas.
A nine-count federal grand jury indictment, returned in San Antonio in April and unsealed June 17, charges all of 15 defendants with conspiracy to commit money laundering. According to the indictment, since January 2000 the defendants have conspired to engage in financial transactions using proceeds derived from the importation, receiving, concealment, buying, and/or selling of cocaine; and have transported or transmited monetary instruments to locations outside the U.S. in an effort to conceal the source, ownership, and control of proceeds derived from unlawful activity.
The indictment also seeks the forfeiture of 12 real estate properties in Cameron and Hidalgo counties with an estimated value of $15 million. The indictment also seeks a money judgment against the defendants in the amount of $30 million representing the alleged proceeds derived from their criminal enterprise.
Throughout the investigation, authorities seized more than 100 kilograms of cocaine. On June 16 authorities seized approximately $500,000 in farm equipment; approximately 20 vehicles; more than 60 firearms; more than 30 horses; and more than $50,000 in U.S. currency.
On June 16 authorities arrested Sergio Adame-Ochoa in San Antonio and Denis Winn in Austin, Texas. The rest of the defendants were all arrested in the McAllen/Mission, Texas, area. All of the defendants remain in federal custody awaiting detention hearings.
Sergio Guadalupe Adame-Ochoa is also charged with four counts of wire fraud affecting a financial institution. According to the indictment, on multiple occasions beginning in 2006, Adame-Ochoa refinanced an almost $1.7 million note with Texas Regional Bank (formerly Border Capital Bank and McAllen National Bank) for the purchase of a property called Riverside Plaza in Mission. The indictment alleges that Adame-Ochoa falsely represented to the bank that he had a non-taxable annual cash flow income in excess of $500,000.
Juan Villarreal-Arelis, Reymundo Villarreal-Arelis, Jose Luis Villarreal-Gonzalez, and Manuel Villarreal-Garcia are also charged with one count of possession of cocaine with intent to distribute. The indictment alleges that since January 2000, the defendants have conspired to possess and distribute cocaine.
The investigation was conducted by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation Waco Treasury Task Force comprised of IRS-CI, Irving Police Department, Woodway Police Department, Texas Department of Public Safety and the McLennan County Sheriff's Office together with the Drug Enforcement Administration's McAllen, San Antonio and Houston field offices and Homeland Security Investigations. The United States Marshals Service in both the Western and Southern Districts of Texas assisted with the arrests.
Upon conviction, the defendants face sentences of between ten years and life in federal prison on the drug conspiracy charge; up to 20 years in federal prison for the money laundering conspiracy charge; and, up to five years in federal prison on the structuring charge.