Pakistani jailed in US for running illegal money transfer business

[Naveed Yaseen]

PHILADELPHIA (October 24 2009): A Pakistani was sentenced on Friday to 37 months in prison for operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, announced United States Attorney Michael L. Levy. Habib Khan, aged 49, from Philadelphia pleaded guilty last April, admitting that he operated a business, from at least November 2001 through February 2009, in which he charged a fee to wire or transport at least 2.1 million dollars to beneficiaries in the Swat region.

Khan never obtained a license to operate such a business and never registered this business with the federal government, as required by law. Additionally, in an effort to hide the activities of his illegal business, Khan structured financial transactions with a local bank in order to prevent the bank from filing currency transaction reports with the federal government.

Khan was convicted on one count of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business, one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, and one count of structuring financial transactions to avoid the filing of currency transaction reports with the federal government.

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