The Specialized Anti-Money Laundering Prosecutor’s Office and the La Vega Prosecutor’s Office present charges against a structure of illicit trafficking of goods, tax fraud and money laundering that moved more than RD$630 million in the financial system
The Specialized Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Prosecutor’s Officetogether with the La Vega Prosecutor’s Office, filed a formal accusation against Melvin Castillo Hernández, Angélica Inés Tejada Hernández and the front company White Castle Real Estate SRL.an alleged structure dedicated to illicit trafficking of goods, tax evasion and money laundering based in La Vega.
Melvin Castillo Hernández was arrested on January 20, 2024, following an investigation by the La Vega Prosecutor’s Office, which linked him to the storage of illicit merchandise, after a raid carried out in the Olympic Stadium sector of La Vega.
During the raid, valuable illegal products were seized, including 112 air conditioners (new), hundreds of alcoholic beverages of different brands, more than ten million pesos in cash, a firearm, as well as pieces and jewelry of high economic value.
The Specialized Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Prosecutor’s Office, for its part, activated, at the request of the La Vega Prosecutor’s Office, the financial investigation, which allowed to identify that the accused went from moving three thousand pesos in his account to growing gigantically between 2022 and 2024, with movements amounting to five hundred eighty-five million, five hundred eighty-six thousand eight hundred thirty-nine pesos with ninety-eight cents, RD$585,586,839.98, additionally accounting for forty-six million, nine hundred fifty-eight thousand nine hundred twenty-seven pesos with thirty-two cents, RD$46,958,927.32, which adds up to a total of 632 million 545 thousand 766 pesos.
He also used his mother, the also accused Angélica Inés Tejada Hernández, as a front man, who, likewise, cannot justify the legal origin of this huge sum of money. They both created a company without operations, called White Castle Real Estate SRL.
Last week, a total of five seizures were carried out, including the three-story house where the illegal goods were seized, the drinks-convenience store, and other properties valued at around twenty-five million pesos.
The defendants are accused of violating the provisions of Law 155-17 on Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism, as well as Law 17-19 on Illicit Trafficking in Goods and 168-21 on Smuggling in the Dominican Republic, as well as Law 11-92 on the tax regime and Law No. 183-02 on the Monetary and Financial Law.
Judge Ramona Nova Cabrera, acting head of the Specialized Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Prosecutor’s Office, and the head prosecutor of La Vega, Aura Luz García, stated in a press release that the accusation represents a firm commitment against organized crime and that it brings together the necessary evidence to identify and achieve an exemplary punishment.
They also announced that the investigation was led by the public prosecutor of the Specialized Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing Prosecutor’s Office, Claudio Alberto Cordero Jiménez.
