HARRISBURG — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (USAO - Pennsylvania, Middle), published as received.
HARRISBURG - The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Christopher Lopez, age 38, and Michael Torres, age 40, both of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, were indicted on February 2, 2022, by a federal grand jury on money laundering charges.
According to United States Attorney John C. Gurganus, Lopez is the owner of C&D Motorsports, a car dealership located in Lancaster, where Torres is employed as a salesperson. The indictment alleges that from October 16, 2019, through December 11, 2019, Lopez and Torres conspired to conceal that the funds used to purchase a vehicle were purported to be proceeds of drug trafficking.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks.
The case was investigated by the IRS Criminal Investigation and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Assistant U.S. Attorney Christian Haugsby is prosecuting the case.
If convicted, the maximum penalty under federal law for the money laundering offense charged is 20 years of imprisonment, a term of supervised release following imprisonment, and a fine. A sentence following a finding of guilt is imposed by the Judge after consideration of the applicable federal sentencing statutes and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
Indictments are only allegations. All persons charged are presumed to be innocent unless and until found guilty in court.
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