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February 5, 2009 Note: the following text is a quote: http://baltimore.fbi.gov/dojpressrel/pressrel09/ba020509.htm PAKISTANI NATIONAL PLEADS GUILTY TO CONSPIRACY TO OPERATE AN UNLICENSED MONEY REMITTING BUSINESS Baltimore, Maryland - Imdad Ullah Ranjha, age 34, a Pakistani national residing in Glen Burnie, Maryland, pleaded guilty today to conspiring to operate an unlicensed money remitting business, announced United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein. According to his guilty plea, Imdad Ranjha worked at Hamza, Inc., a money remitter business in the District of Columbia operated by co-defendant Saifullah Ranjha (S. Ranjha). A cooperating witness, acting at the direction of law...

A federal grand jury in Baltimore has indicted 39 people in an international money laundering scheme using an informal currency transfer system known as hawala, the U.S. Justice Department said on Thursday. The defendants and one business face charges including money laundering, conspiracy to bribe a public official and operating unlicensed money transmitting businesses, U.S. Attorney Rod Rosenstein said in a statement. The indictments seek the forfeiture of more than $5 million and ownership interest in two Maryland convenience stores. Five other people were charged with bribery and one other with money laundering in the scheme, the Justice Department said....