Money Mule Herder

Recruits and coordinates networks of account-holders whose credentials are fed into bots that spray funds through dozens of pass-through accounts.

Money mule herders recruit and coordinate multiple mules, orchestrating their casino transactions and structuring deposit amounts to avoid detection. This organized approach conceals the criminals' identities, impedes financial institutions' attempts to trace illicit proceeds, and amplifies layering effectiveness.

Criminals behind fake job recruitment schemes coordinate the recruitment of individuals as money mules by:

• Posting deceptive job advertisements or reaching out to potential recruits with promises of easy or remote work.
• Directing unsuspecting recruits to open or use personal accounts, funnel illicit funds, and forward them to others.
• Providing detailed instructions to maintain the appearance of legitimate employment, which lowers red flags at financial institutions and obscures the ultimate beneficiaries.

This coordination greatly reduces the herders’ own exposure to authorities and complicates detection for financial institutions.

Money mule herders facilitate micro-structuring by:

• Recruiting and directing numerous money mules to deposit or transfer small amounts into various accounts.
• Overseeing the timing and distribution of these micro-deposits to remain below regulatory triggers.

This arrangement conceals the true source of illicit funds and complicates financial institutions’ due diligence efforts.

Money mule herders recruit, coordinate, and compensate multiple mules, enabling large-scale or cross-border funnel account networks. They:

• Target individuals through fake job postings, social media offers, or direct inducements to open bank or digital payment accounts.
• Instruct mules on timing and transaction amounts, orchestrating illicit fund movements across different institutions or jurisdictions.
• Leverage each mule's account credentials, frustrating financial institutions’ attempts to identify ultimate beneficiaries.

One investigation uncovered a duo that enlisted seven individuals to launder scam proceeds, exemplifying how herders expand operations quickly.

Money mule herders coordinate recruitment—often using social media ads, job postings, or direct outreach—to enlist individuals as mules. They:

• Target financially vulnerable groups or international students to scale cross-border recruitment.
• Instruct, manage, and pay the newly recruited mules, ensuring seamless movement of illicit funds.
• Exploit gaps in financial institution controls by distributing illicit proceeds across various accounts under different account holders.

Individuals or groups design and operate phishing campaigns to recruit unsuspecting recipients as money mules. They:

• Send deceptive job offers or urgent financial service requests to gather victims' account details.
• Direct the flow of illicit proceeds through multiple recruited mules, complicating tracing efforts and obscuring the origin of funds.

By layering transactions across multiple accounts, they hinder financial institutions' ability to identify the true originators and beneficiaries, further distancing the criminal enterprises from scrutiny.

Money mule herders orchestrate romance scams by building fictitious personas and emotional trust with victims:

• They recruit unwitting partners to open or repurpose accounts as conduits for illicit money, bypassing standard AML checks.
• Their instructions direct rapid layering of funds, complicating efforts to trace beneficial ownership and fueling further criminal activity.

Money mule herders knowingly coordinate the recruitment of individuals via social media. They instruct these recruits to receive and forward illicit funds, distributing transactions across multiple personal accounts. This approach obscures the origin of funds, hindering financial institutions' transaction monitoring and linking efforts.