/biz/ - Business & Finance

New Bedford Latin Kings bought houses they planned to renovate and flip in an elaborate scheme to launder drug money, feds say — a move one organized crime expert called an indicator of how sophisticated and “how much of a threat” the gang could be.

The New Bedford “trap” houses — used to sell drugs and conduct other gang business — at 104 Tallman St., 269 Sawyer St. and 358 N. Front St., and a fourth property at 585 Elm St., were court-authorized for seizure by the government after dozens of alleged Latin Kings members were indicted in “Operation Throne Down” earlier this month.

U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling’s office detailed a scheme to use drug money to renovate properties, through cash-only subcontractor payments, to later flip them for a profit and give the drug dealers a declarable lawful source of income, in the 190-page indictment.

“I’ll show you how to hide the money with the bank, it’s simple,” Robert Avitable, the Duxbury-based landlord who was identified as a gang associate in the “Operation Throne Down” racketeering conspiracy, allegedly told Jorge Rodriguez, the Latin Kings’ statewide second-in-command, explaining they could hide the gang’s drug profits in Avitable’s trust.

Cont'd:
https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/12/26/feds-latin-kings-tried-to-flip-houses-with-new-bedford-landlord/