PITTSBURGH, Pa. ‑ Three residents of Ligonier, Penn., were indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh on Feb. 8, 2011, on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

The five‑ count indictment named Gregory J. Podlucky, 50, G. Jesse Podlucky, 30, and Karla S. Podlucky, 49.

According to the indictment, the defendants laundered funds obtained by arranging the sale of jewelry at Sotheby's auctions in New York City in October 2009, and April 2010.  They had earlier purchased the jewelry with money taken from a bottling company, LeNature's Inc., based in Latrobe, Penn.  LeNature's went into bankruptcy in November 2006, and is currently under liquidation.

The law provides for a maximum total sentence of 80 years in prison, a fine of $2,000,000, or both. Under the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, the actual sentence imposed would be based upon the seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the defendant.

Assistant United States Attorneys James Y. Garrett and Robert S. Cessar are prosecuting this case on behalf of the government.

Thomas Czerski of the Internal Revenue Service/Criminal Investigation and David Gealey of the United States Postal Inspection Service conducted the investigation leading to the indictment in this case.

An indictment or information is an accusation. A defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Return to Top