Drug Trafficker

Drug traffickers introduce proceeds from narcotics sales into casinos by purchasing chips or loading slot machines with illicit cash.

• They engage in minimal wagering, then convert the chips or TITO tickets back into higher-denomination payouts.
• This process masks the original source of the money when financial institutions later receive or process what appear to be gambling profits.

Drug traffickers hire or direct money mules to launder bulk cash through crypto ATMs.

• They provide proceeds from narcotics sales to mules, who deposit the cash into ATMs and convert it to cryptocurrency.
• This rapid placement and layering of funds across jurisdictions make it difficult for financial institutions to trace the original source of the money.

Drug traffickers generate illicit proceeds by:

• Securing specialized precursors and diverting them into unauthorized production.
• Employing supply and distribution networks to transport finished drugs covertly.
• Exploiting professional money launderers and shell entities to hide illegal profits.

Drug traffickers finance the procurement of precursor chemicals with illicit proceeds from narcotics sales. They:

• Channel funds through multiple accounts and shell companies, disguising payments under misrepresented invoices.
• Exploit virtual currencies, rapidly converting assets to fiat and paying foreign suppliers while evading direct scrutiny by financial institutions.
• Leverage dark web channels and anonymized transactions, obscuring their identities and the illicit purpose of these purchases.

Drug traffickers exploit unlicensed MSBs by:

• Using clandestine currency exchanges or remittance services to convert and move narcotics proceeds.
• Avoiding formal banking channels, thereby evading detection by financial institutions and law enforcement.