The spiritual leader of Syrian Jews in the United States, Brooklyn, New York was sentenced to two years' house arrest in June 2011. They were one of 46 defendants, including three rabbis, charged as a result of a federal sting in New Jersey's biggest corruption case. Originally charged with money laundering, the defendant pled guilty to a reduced charge of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.
Over the past several years, there has been increasing concern over the threat of international money laundering operations that allow criminals to move billions of dollars illegally overseas and out of the reach of their victims. Gilbert Chikli is one of the most notorious financial con men to date, godfather of the 'Fake CEO' scam that allowed him to steal more than 8 million Euros from many of the largest corporations in the world. Despite being convicted of fraud among other things, and sentenced to seven years in a French prison, Chikli is still living freely in Israel today.