Reported by: Department of Justice, U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of California

Juan Manuel Alvarez-Inzunza, a high-level money launderer for the Sinaloa Cartel, was sentenced to 188 months in prison today for his role in a conspiracy to transfer millions of dollars in drug proceeds out of the United States.

According to court records, starting in 2013, agents with Homeland Security Investigations intercepted the communications of Alvarez-Inzunza and other high-level Sinaloa Cartel members as they discussed the transfer of drug proceeds. Alvarez-Inzunza, who had a law degree and worked as an attorney in Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico, regularly received requests originating from the top leadership of the cartel—including Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Joaquin “Chapo” Guzman—to arrange for the collection of drug proceeds in cities across the United States including New York, Boston, Chicago, and Detroit.  Alvarez-Inzunza then worked with associates in Bogota, Colombia to arrange for the transfer of those funds to Mexico, Central America, and other locations.

Using information from wire intercepts, agents were able to seize over $4 million in bulk currency drug proceeds before they could leave the country, and intercepts showed Alvarez-Inzunza orchestrating the transfer of millions more on behalf of the cartel.

Read full report: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/top-money-launderer-sinaloa-cartel-sentenced-more-15-years-prison