TAMPA, Florida — Four men have been indicted on charges of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and money laundering, according to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office. Daniel Liburdi, a 35-year-old from Miami, Joseph Scotto, a 44-year-old from Bay Shore, New York, Gregory Walker, a 43-year-old from Ontario, Canada, and Frank Carbone III, a 35-year-old from Orlando, face serious charges in connection with the scheme.
Liburdi and Carbone III are also charged with bank fraud, each carrying a maximum penalty of 30 years in federal prison. The conspiracy to commit money laundering offense carries a maximum penalty of 20 years. The indictment reveals that the defendants allegedly submitted fraudulent applications to U.S. financial institutions to obtain merchant processing accounts using the personal information of unwitting individuals.
The indictment further alleges that the conspirators used these accounts to accept credit and debit cards for an e-commerce enterprise employing high-risk sales techniques. This allowed them to shield themselves from liability while generating over $128 million in criminal proceeds. The defendants are also accused of laundering these proceeds through transactions involving conspirator-controlled bank accounts…