JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A Jacksonville business owner facing money laundering charges is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday afternoon in federal court.
Mauricio Chahine, 52, was indicted on five counts of money laundering and attempted money laundering.
If convicted, Chahine faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison on each count.
Chahine was arrested on a criminal complaint on Nov. 12 and has been ordered to remain in jail while awaiting trial.
According to the indictment and other court documents, beginning in March 2024, Chahine met several times with undercover federal agents who were posing as drug traffickers. Chahine explained to the “clients” how he could launder money for a fee on their behalf, investigators said.
Over four meetings, Chahine accepted cash from the agents, totaling more than $200,000, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors said he then had the cash divided up and deposited into the bank accounts of “various corporate entities.”
Chahine’s businesses are listed in court documents as Arby’s Seafood and Chicken on Univeristy Boulevard North in Arlington, AlBarakah International Grocery Store Inc. on Arlington Road North and SUNY Enterprise Inc.
After the money was deposited in the businesses' accounts, Chahine returned the money to the agents -- minus his fee -- through a series of wire transfers to a bank account controlled by the agents.
Investigators said Chahine thought the money he was laundering for his “clients” came from drug trafficking, which is why they needed to hide where it really came from.
The indictment also alleges that Chahine attempted to engage in money laundering on a fifth occasion shortly before his arrest.
An indictment is merely a formal charge that a defendant has committed one or more violations of federal criminal law, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless, and until, proven guilty.
