Danvers Man Convicted of Money Laundering and Operating Unlicensed Bitcoin Business
On Friday, November 8, 2024, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts announced the conviction of Trung Nguyen, a 48-year-old resident of Danvers, for money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. Following a five-day trial, Nguyen was found guilty of conducting an unlicensed money transmitting business and one count of concealment money laundering. However, the jury acquitted him of a separate money laundering charge. Sentencing is scheduled for February 12, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Richard G. Stearns.
Nguyen, also known by the alias “DCS420,” was indicted by a federal grand jury on May 30, 2023. The prosecution revealed that he operated a cash-for-Bitcoin service through his business, National Vending, LLC, which he owned from September 2017 to October 2020. During this time, he facilitated the conversion of over $1 million in cash into Bitcoin, often for individuals involved in illegal activities, including drug dealers and scam artists.
Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy emphasized the detrimental impact of Nguyen’s operations, stating, “This defendant’s ‘no questions asked’ money laundering operation allowed a known drug dealer to turn their dirty cash into more deadly meth… and it allowed scammers to swindle vulnerable victims out of their hard-earned savings.” He underscored that money laundering is critical to various forms of criminal conduct and reaffirmed the commitment to monitor and prosecute such activities.
The investigation revealed that Nguyen knowingly accepted cash from individuals he recognized as criminals. He received approximately $250,000 in cash from a methamphetamine dealer and over $400,000 from victims of romance scams, who were misled into converting their cash into Bitcoin for fraudsters. Notably, Nguyen failed to file the required Suspicious Activity Reports or Currency Transaction Reports for these transactions, which is mandated under federal regulations for money transmitters.
Nguyen’s methods for concealing his operations included misrepresenting National Vending as a vending machine business and employing encrypted messaging apps for customer communication. He also used various tactics to evade detection, such as breaking large cash deposits into smaller amounts and enrolling in a course designed to teach individuals how to conceal illicit businesses.
Under federal law, operators of virtual currency exchanges like Nguyen’s are classified as money transmitters and must register with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). They are also required to implement effective anti-money laundering programs. However, Nguyen intentionally failed to register his business and did not maintain necessary compliance with financial regulations.
The charges against Nguyen carry severe penalties. The conviction for money laundering could result in a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, accompanied by three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the transaction. The charge for conducting an unlicensed money transmitting business could lead to a sentence of up to five years, along with similar terms of supervised release and fines.
