Newark Man Laundered $23M Of Drug Money In 3 States: Feds

NEWARK, NJ — A Newark man admitted that he laundered $23 million in drug proceeds using cashier’s checks he purchased at banks in New Jersey, New York and Florida, authorities announced Thursday.

Edwin Deleon-Batista, 37, pleaded guilty before a U.S. District Court judge to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of identity fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors released the following statement about Thursday’s plea:

“From March 2018 through October 2019, Deleon-Batista laundered over $23 million in cash drug proceeds on behalf of a money laundering organization with close ties to drug trafficking organizations in the Dominican Republic and elsewhere. Deleon picked up large amounts of cash drug proceeds in New Jersey, New York and Florida and laundered it by purchasing cashier’s checks at local bank branches. The checks were made payable to individuals and companies specified by the leaders of the money laundering organization. By converting the drug proceeds to cashier’s checks, Deleon tried to hide the source of the illegal cash and avoid scrutiny by law enforcement and banks.”

Prosecutors continued:

“Deleon-Batista was previously arrested on federal money laundering charges in New York in April 2019. Soon after his arrest, Deleon-Batista began using a stolen identity and obtained a fraudulent Florida driver’s license to continue the money laundering scheme. He used the fraudulent license to open several bank accounts, which he then used to convert millions of dollars more in cash drug proceeds into cashier’s checks at bank branches in New Jersey, New York and Florida over a five-month period.”

The charge of money laundering conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the amount involved in the offense, whichever is greater. The charge of identity fraud carries a maximum prison sentence of five years and a maximum $250,000 fine, prosecutors said.

Sentencing is scheduled for June 22.

Keep updated with local public safety alerts at the Patch Newark Facebook page. Learn more about posting announcements or events to your local Patch site. Sign up for Patch email newsletters.

Send local news tips and correction requests to eric.kiefer@patch.com