Miami cryptocurrency exchanger sentenced to prison for running unlicensed money transmitter business
2024-04-02 · Press release
Summary: A Miami-based digital currency exchanger was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business that converted cryptocurrency drug proceeds into cash.
MIAMI – A Miami-based digital currency exchanger was sentenced to 57 months in federal prison for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business that converted cryptocurrency drug proceeds into cash.
Raul Rodriguez, aka raultiovigia, 44, of Miami, Florida, was in the business of converting cash into bitcoin and other digital currency, and vice versa, in exchange for a fee. Rodriguez provided these services to the public through an online digital currency exchange platform known as “LocalBitcoins.com.”
Rodriguez exchanged at least $5,047,462 in digital currency from 2016 through 2022; during the first two years of that period, he was the highest-volume trader of digital currency on the LocalBitcoins.com platform in the State of Florida.
In addition to the 57-month prison term, Rodriguez will be on supervised release for three years, and was ordered to pay a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $5,047,462.
In March 2013, the United States Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) publicly announced that an administrator or exchanger of a virtual currency, such as Bitcoin, was required to register with the Secretary of the Treasury as a money transmitting business.
Despite these requirements, Rodriguez operated an unregistered and unlicensed money transmitting business for over five years. Rodriguez’s clients included a convicted drug trafficker and a professional money launderer.
U.S. Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Matthew D. Line of the IRS, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), Miami Field Office, announced the sentence.
IRS-CI Miami investigated the case with assistance from the FBI, Miami Field Office, and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher Browne prosecuted the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Emily Stone handled asset forfeiture.
Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or at http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov, under case number 23-cr-20474.
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- https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/miami-cryptocurrency-exchanger-sentenced-prison-running-unlicensed-money-transmitter
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| participant_id | name | role | title | organization | location | age | nationality | status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1270 | Raul Rodriguez | defendant | Miami, Florida | 44 | sentenced | |||
| 1271 | Markenzy Lapointe | prosecutor | U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida | Florida | |||
| 1272 | Matthew D. Line | investigator | Special Agent in Charge | IRS, Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) | Miami, Florida | |||
| 1273 | Christopher Browne | prosecutor | Assistant U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office | Florida | |||
| 1274 | Emily Stone | prosecutor | Assistant U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney's Office | Florida |
| agency_id | agency_name | abbreviation | role | office_location | agents_mentioned | contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 800 | U.S. Attorney's Office | USAO | announcing the sentence | Southern District of Florida | Markenzy Lapointe | announced the sentence |
| 801 | Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation | IRS-CI | investigation | Miami Field Office | Matthew D. Line | investigated the case |
| 802 | Federal Bureau of Investigation | FBI | investigation | Miami Field Office | assisted in the investigation | |
| 803 | Drug Enforcement Administration | DEA | investigation | Miami Field Division | assisted in the investigation | |
| 804 | U.S. Attorney's Office | USAO | prosecution | Southern District of Florida | Christopher Browne | prosecuted the case |
| 805 | U.S. Attorney's Office | USAO | asset forfeiture | Southern District of Florida | Emily Stone | handled asset forfeiture |
| charge_id | charge_description | statute | severity | max_penalty | fine_amount | defendant | status | participant_id | cl_docket_id | count_num | is_1960 | verified_1960 | source | updated_at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 630 | Operating an unlicensed money transmitting business | Raul Rodriguez | sentenced | 1 | enrichment | 2026-09-16T19:45:55+00:00 | ||||||||
| 2577 | operating an unlicensed money transmitting business that converted cryptocurrency drug proceeds into cash | 1 | press | 2026-09-16T19:45:55+00:00 | ||||||||||
| 2578 | unlicensed money transmitting business that converted cryptocurrency drug proc | 1 | press | 2026-09-16T19:45:55+00:00 | ||||||||||
| 2579 | unlicensed money transmitting business for over five years | 1 | press | 2026-09-16T19:45:55+00:00 |
| fin_id | action_type | amount | currency | description | asset_type | defendant | status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 179 | forfeiture | $5,047,462 | USD | forfeiture money judgment | cash | Raul Rodriguez | ordered |
| victim_id | victim_type | description | number_affected | loss_amount | geographic_scope | vulnerability_factors | impact_description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 130 |
| quote_id | quote_text | speaker_name | speaker_title | speaker_organization | quote_type | context | significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 217 | an administrator or exchanger of a virtual currency, such as Bitcoin, was required to register with the Secretary of the Treasury as a money transmitting business | Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) | announcement | Legal requirement for cryptocurrency administrators/exchangers to register as money transmitters | Establishes the legal basis for Rodriguez's violation by operating an unregistered business |
| theme_id | theme_name | description | significance | related_statutes | geographic_scope | temporal_aspects | stakeholders |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 719 | Unlicensed Money Transmission | Rodriguez operated an unregistered and unlicensed money transmitting business converting cryptocurrency to cash. | Violated FinCEN's 2013 regulations requiring registration, enabling illegal transactions. | 18 U.S.C. § 1960 | National | Over five years (2016–2022) | Law enforcement, financial institutions, victims |
| 720 | Cryptocurrency | Used Bitcoin and digital currencies to facilitate drug proceeds conversion. | Enabled anonymous and cross-border financial transactions for illicit activities. | International | 2016–2022 | Users, regulators, financial institutions | |
| 721 | Money Laundering | Converted drug traffickers' proceeds into cash through his services. | Allowed criminals to legitimize illicit funds. | 18 U.S.C. § 1956 | National | 2016–2022 | Law enforcement, financial institutions, victims |
| 722 | Asset Forfeiture | Ordered to forfeit $5,047,462 as proceeds from illegal activities. | Recovery of illicit gains to deter future crimes. | 18 U.S.C. § 981 | National | 2023 sentencing | Government, victims |
| 723 | Regulatory Compliance Failure | Ignored FinCEN's 2013 mandate to register as a money transmitter. | Highlighted risks of non-compliance with financial regulations. | 31 U.S.C. § 5318 | National | 2013–2022 | Regulators, financial institutions |
| 724 | Law Enforcement Collaboration | IRS-CI, FBI, DEA, and U.S. Attorney's office cooperated in the investigation. | Demonstrated multi-agency coordination to combat financial crimes. | National | During investigation and prosecution | Law enforcement agencies, prosecutors |
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