德州Austin会计师Arun Mago判41个月：洗钱15万美元可卡因毒资、骗取近100万美元PPP与EIDL贷款，另判赔偿逾90万美元、罚款25万美元
得克萨斯州 Austin——注册会计师 Arun Mago（47岁）因洗钱与银行诈骗罪名被联邦法院判处41个月监禁。美国司法部德克萨斯西区联邦检察官 Justin R. Simmons 宣布了这一判决；检方指控，Mago 在疫情期间骗取薪资保护计划（PPP）贷款，又为可卡因分销洗钱15万美元现金。
根据法庭文件，2023年10月至2024年7月间，Mago 清洗了15万美元现金，他明知这笔钱是可卡因分销的所得。调查还发现，疫情期间他多次实施贷款诈骗：约在2021年4月4日至11月23日间，Mago 以多家商业实体的名义申请并取得多笔欺诈性的PPP贷款与经济伤害灾难贷款（EIDL），总额近100万美元。银行记录显示，Mago 把这些资金转入自己的个人银行账户，用于多笔房地产购买。
联邦检察官 Simmons 说：「Arun Mago 不仅在新冠疫情混乱时期欺诈美国政府，还继续走上犯罪道路、清洗了大笔毒资。Mago 自以为高枕无忧、是个诈骗高手，现在他知道并非如此。本届政府把起诉盗取美国民众钱财的诈骗者列为优先事项，德克萨斯西区再次完成了这一使命。本办公室与联邦执法伙伴将始终追究盗取美国纳税人钱财、破坏联邦计划者的责任。」
国税局刑事调查局（IRS-CI）德克萨斯外地办公室特别探员主管 Christopher J. Altemus Jr. 说，Mago 身为注册会计师，曾写过一本书，其中一章题为「黑钱」（Black Money），声称洗钱与逃税手法无从追踪；「我只能想象，当我们追踪到他逾90万美元的新冠贷款诈骗、又在一次卧底行动中以洗钱罪名将其抓获时，他有多震惊。钱总会留下痕迹，罪犯总自以为比执法者聪明。你可以考取证书、可以写书，但一旦触犯法律，最终一章由我们来写——拿走你的钱与自由。」
除监禁外，联邦地区法官 Robert Pitman 还判令 Mago 支付逾90万美元赔偿金与25万美元罚款。此案由国税局刑事调查局（IRS-CI）与德克萨斯州总检察长办公室调查，联邦助理检察官 Keith Henneke 负责起诉。
Austin Accountant Arun Mago Sentenced to 41 Months for Laundering $150,000 in Cocaine Proceeds and Nearly $1 Million in PPP and EIDL Fraud
Austin, Texas — Arun Mago, 47, an Austin accountant, was sentenced in federal court to 41 months in prison for money laundering and bank fraud that undermined the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas announced.
According to court documents, between October 2023 and July 2024, Mago laundered $150,000 in cash that he knew to be the proceeds of cocaine distribution. Investigators also found that he engaged in repeated loan fraud during the COVID-19 pandemic: from about April 4, 2021 to November 23, 2021, Mago applied for and received several fraudulent PPP loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) for several business entities totaling nearly $1 million. Bank records revealed that Mago transferred the funds into his personal bank account and used them for multiple real estate purchases.
"Arun Mago not only defrauded the United States government during the chaotic COVID-19 pandemic but continued down his criminal path to launder a substantial amount drug money," said U.S. Attorney Simmons. "Mago thought that he was untouchable and an expert fraudster, but now he knows otherwise. The Trump Administration has prioritized prosecuting fraudsters who steal from the American people, and the Western District of Texas has, once again, met that mission. This office and our federal law enforcement partners will always hold accountable those who steal from the American taxpayer and undermine our federal programs."
Christopher J. Altemus Jr., Special Agent in Charge of IRS Criminal Investigation's Texas Field Office, noted that Mago, a certified public accountant, wrote a book with a chapter titled "Black Money" and claimed money laundering and tax evasion schemes were untraceable. "I can only imagine his shock when we traced his more than $900,000 of COVID loan fraud and also got him on money laundering charges in an undercover operation," Altemus said. "Money always leaves a trace and criminals always think they are smarter than law enforcement. You can earn certifications, you can write books, but, when you break the law, we write the final chapter by taking your money and your freedom."
In addition to the imprisonment, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman ordered Mago to pay over $900,000 in restitution and a $250,000 fine. IRS Criminal Investigation and the Office of the Texas Attorney General investigated the case, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Keith Henneke prosecuted it.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：位于德克萨斯州 Austin 的美国联邦法院大楼。Larry D. Moore 摄，CC BY 4.0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: The United States Courthouse in Austin, Texas. Photo by Larry D. Moore, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
