BOSTON, MA -- A Framingham man was sentenced yesterday in federal court in Boston for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.

Luiz DaSilva, 69, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton to 18 months in prison and two years of supervised release. On Nov. 27, 2023, the defendant pleaded guilty to operation of an unlicensed money transmitting business.   

DaSilva was arrested on Dec. 15, 2022 for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business out of Framingham. Under federal law, entities who transfer funds on behalf of the public, are required to register with the Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network within 180 days of commencing services. Registration is required to protect against United States financial institutions being used for money laundering and other illicit activities. DaSilva never registered his business with FinCEN. However, between at least 2018 and 2020, DaSilva regularly accepted cash from numerous parties that he transferred to Florida-based bank accounts without registration with FinCEN. These transactions amounted to approximately $4.9 million dollars in a two-year period. The defendant structured his cash transactions to avoid any one transaction being more than $10,000, which requires reporting by the financial institution of the transaction to the federal government.    

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy; Stephen Belleau, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration, New England Field Division; and Framingham Police Chief Lester Baker made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorney John T. Mulcahy of the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit prosecuted the case.

Source: U.S. Attorneys District of Massachusetts

###