Colombian Crypto Broker Sentenced to 160 Months for Money Laundering

Leonardo de Jesus Zuluaga Duque, a Colombian crypto broker, was sentenced to 160 months in prison for his role in a money laundering and narcotics case involving cryptocurrency. The sentencing was announced by the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York on October 21. Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil also ordered five years of supervised release and the forfeiture of 14751846 dollars. Zuluaga Duque was involved in laundering approximately 14.5 million dollars in Tether linked to drug trafficking between May and November 2023. The laundering scheme involved converting criminal proceeds into Tether, transferring them through an unlicensed money-transmission business, and exchanging them for US dollars. US shell companies then sent the funds to Colombian companies, where they were converted into pesos for distribution. The laundering figure of 14.5 million dollars pertains to Tether transactions, while the forfeiture amount is separate. Zuluaga Duque's prison term exceeds 13 years, followed by an additional five years of supervised release.

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