A Brooklyn, New York man who operated a charitable organization, or “gemach,”
today admitted his role in a money laundering conspiracy, U.S. Attorney Paul J.
Fishman announced.
David S. Goldhirsh, 30, pleaded guilty before Judge Joel A. Pisano in Trenton
federal court to one count of a 14-count indictment charging him with owning and
operating an illegal money transmitting business. Goldhirsh had previously been
indicted with Rabbi Lavel Schwartz, 60, of Brooklyn, who pleaded guilty
Thursday, May 24, to money laundering conspiracy.
According to documents filed in this case and statements made in court:
Schwartz admitted that beginning in May 2008, he and his brother, Rabbi
Mordchai Fish, met with Solomon Dwek, an individual he now knows was a
cooperating witness with the United States. For a fee of approximately 10
percent, Fish and Schwartz agreed to launder and conceal Dwek’s funds, which
were purported proceeds of illegal businesses, through a series of purported
charities, also known as gemachs, for a 10 percent fee.
Fish would instruct Dwek to make checks payable to various charitable
organizations, or gemachs, including Boyoner Gemilas Chesed (BGC), which was
operated by Goldhirsh, who provided cash directly to Fish and Dwek on two
occasions in exchange for checks made payable to BGC and at least five
additional checks were deposited into the BGC account as part of other
transactions. Fish previously pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit money
laundering and is scheduled to be sentenced on June 18, 2012.
The charge to which Goldhirsh pleaded guilty carries a maximum potential
penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He is scheduled to be
sentenced October 24, 2012.
U.S. Attorney Fishman credited special agents of the FBI, under the direction
of Special Agent in Charge Michael B. Ward; and special agents of IRS-Criminal
Investigation, under the direction of Acting Special Agent in Charge JoAnn S.
Zuniga, for the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark McCarren of the
U.S. Attorney’s Office Special Prosecutions Division in Newark.
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