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Let’s uncover some tarnished gems in the world of finance.
A member of the Cartier jewelry lineage has been handed an eight-year prison sentence by a federal court after admitting to managing an unlicensed cryptocurrency exchange that laundered over $470 million from drug trafficking activities.
Maximilien de Hoop Cartier, a French national who also pursues a music career under the moniker “Max Cartier,” received his sentence in a Manhattan federal court on Tuesday. He previously pleaded guilty in October to charges of running an unlicensed money-transmitting operation and conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
The 58-year-old Cartier orchestrated the laundering scheme through a network of U.S.-based shell companies masquerading as legitimate software and technology firms. These entities, with names such as Bullpix Solutions, Softmill LLC, and VC Innovated, were used to channel funds to Colombia, as explained by federal prosecutors.
These companies were purely a front to handle and transfer international drug profits, converting cryptocurrency from drug cartels into traditional cash.
To fool banks, Cartier used forged contracts and invoices making it appear the firms were doing legitimate tech work. He deliberately broke transactions into chunks to avoid bank scrutiny.
The scheme, dubbed the “Cartier Cell” by feds, dates back to at least 2018.
The jewelry heir told an undercover FBI agent he considered a New York City hotel his second home, where he handled his crypto clients, lawyers and banks.
In 2021, DEA agents seized nearly $940,000 from his accounts after funneling drug proceeds into them through an undercover operation.
Cartier then walked into the US Attorney’s office in Pennsylvania with forged business records and talked prosecutors into returning a portion of the money before agents built the case that ultimately put him away.
Cartier, a French resident and Argentine citizen, was ordered to pay $2,362,160 in forfeiture — his cut of the laundering operation — and forfeit several shell company bank accounts.
US Attorney John Clayton said that the Cartier “exploited his knowledge of US and international financial systems to launder drug money and other crime proceeds.”
Cartier’s social media advertises his music career, including his new single, “Somos Novios.”
An apparently photoshopped post from February 19, 2024, depicts Cartier sitting down with CNN for an interview; however, web searches yield no results.