Washington charges Venezuelan man with laundering $1 billion through cryptocurrencies

A 59-year-old Venezuelan man, Jorge Figueira, has been charged in U.S. court with laundering up to $1 billion through cryptocurrencies and sending money to accounts outside the country, the Justice Department announced this Friday.

"This case involves the alleged laundering of approximately $1 billion, a scale of criminal conduct that poses a profound threat to financial systems and public safety," said Lindsey Halligan, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia (northeast), quoted in a statement from the department.

"Money laundering at this level allows transnational criminal organizations to operate, expand and cause real harm around the world," she added.

Figueira is accused of having used "bank accounts, accounts on cryptocurrency exchange platforms, private cryptocurrency wallets and non-existent companies," the AFP explained in a news story.

Through exchange operations between currencies and cryptocurrencies, the accused allegedly sent money to companies and individuals located in the U.S. and in countries such as Colombia, China, Mexico and Panama.

Figueira could be sentenced to 20 years in prison if found guilty, the Justice Department said.