Chicago man guilty of money laundering for drug traffickers learns sentence

A money launderer for a Chicago-based drug trafficking organization has been sentenced to more than eight years in federal prison. 

The backstory:

Cosme Chacon, 55, pleaded guilty last year to a money laundering conspiracy charge. U.S. District Judge John J. Tharp Jr. handed down the 100-month sentence Tuesday in federal court in Chicago.

Chacon was part of a drug trafficking network that transported heroin from New York, Florida and Texas to Chicago. 

Once the drugs were sold locally, Chacon laundered the proceeds through wire transfers to Colombia and other countries. He was one of four defendants indicted in 2007, all of whom pleaded guilty. His co-defendants received prison terms ranging from one to 16 years.

After being released on bond in 2009, Chacon fled and evaded authorities for over a decade. He was captured in Panama in 2022 and extradited to the United States.

Officials from the IRS, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Marshals Service, and Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs also assisted in securing Chacon’s arrest and extradition.

The Source: The information in this story came from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois.

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