Monday, November 14, 2011

Anatomy of a sweet smelling cartel money laundering front

Earlier this year, Grits argued in a post both lauded and criticized that money laundering of drug profits artificially boosted Texas' economy by propping up seemingly legitimate front businesses, contributing to the so-called Texas economic "miracle." The Texas Tribune's Julian Aguilar has an excellent feature describing one such company - a Laredo-based perfumeria, of all things - exemplifying that dynamic.

Photo by the Texas Tribune's Jennifer Whitney


Anonymous said...

Very good coverage... on another note I wonder how many other "legitimate" appearing buisness establishments on the U.S. side are indulging in the sweets?

Rather than focusing so much energy on chasing the small time user, I wish our law enforcment would focus on the white collar crime element of the drug business.

Kevin Stouwie said...

The "small time user" is the proverbial low hanging fruit. Catching people who are smart enough to bury drug profits inside of legitimate businesses would take brains and hard work. Why bother with that when you can keep on getting plea deals by scaring the low hanging fruit and their court appointed attorneys with huge sentences?

Anonymous said...

KS 7:16,

Would just like to see us taxpayers get a little better return than chicken shit services
for the prime rib law enforcement budgets that the public has been paying.

Law enforcement goes around bullying everybody who is generally a good citizen who makes a traffic violation or an honest mistake. At the same time they couldn't make a significant dent in the drug buisness to save their ass, even if the opportunity was sitting on the hood of their car.