A Colombian national has been sentenced in Boston for his involvement in an international money laundering operation linked to drug trafficking. Jaime Humberto Mejia-Bencardino, 62, received a 115-month prison sentence from U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns after pleading guilty to charges of money laundering conspiracy and laundering monetary instruments.
Mejia-Bencardino was part of a group of 20 individuals indicted by a federal grand jury in May 2022 for their roles in the conspiracy. The organization laundered over $6 million from Colombian cartels through banking systems in the United States, Caribbean, and Europe.
The investigation, which began in October 2016, uncovered that the organization used the Colombian Black Market Peso Exchange (BMPE) to conceal drug proceeds and evade currency exchange requirements. The BMPE involved exchanging Colombian pesos for dollar proceeds from drug sales using peso brokers and money couriers.
During the investigation, authorities seized $1 million from corporate bank accounts and traced nearly 3,000 kilograms of cocaine back to the organization. Significant seizures included approximately 1,193 kilograms of cocaine at sea near Jamaica and 1,555 kilograms found in shipping containers at Colombia's Port of Buenaventura.
An undercover agent infiltrated the organization by posing as an international money launderer capable of handling bulk cash transactions globally. Mejia-Bencardino negotiated contracts for laundering operations and directed funds to various accounts to disguise their origins.
U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley highlighted the collaboration between multiple agencies in this case: "This effort is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation." Agencies involved included the Drug Enforcement Administration's New England Field Division and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation's Boston Field Office.
Mejia-Bencardino is among eleven defendants sentenced so far; only one defendant remains unconvicted. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs played a key role in securing arrests and extraditions related to this case.
The OCDETF program aims to dismantle high-level criminal organizations threatening U.S. security through coordinated efforts among prosecutors and intelligence agencies.
The remaining defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
