Southern Texas Accountant Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering Conspiracy

James L. Porter, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, announced today that Mario Luis Torres, an accountant from the McAllen, Texas, area, pled guilty yesterday afternoon in federal district court to a charge of Conspiracy to commit Money Laundering. Sentencing has been set for April 19, 2016, at 1:30 P.M. before the Honorable Nancy J. Rosenstengel, United States District Judge. At sentencing, Torres faces up to twenty years in prison, a fine of up to $500,000, up to three years of supervised release, and a mandatory special assessment fee of $100.

Evidence in support of this prosecution was obtained in an investigation which was conducted under the auspices of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF). The OCDETF initiative is designed to bring federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies and resources together to identify, target and dismantle large national and international drug trafficking organizations. Agencies participating in this case include the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigations. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Monica A. Stump.