Hiding Assets By Structuring, Stashing Cash & A Nominee Bank Account

USA v. Trahan was about the criminal prosecution of former FBI Special Agent, Gregory Paul Trahan. During Mr. Trahan’s divorce, Mr. Trahan hid bank accounts and cash from his wife. Mr. Trahan also helped a person in another divorce, hide community property / cash. In furtherance of Mr. Trahan’s scheme to hide community property, Mr. Trahan withdrew several hundred thousand dollars from bank accounts.  Mr. Trahan made these withdrawals in cash, with each withdrawal below $10,000.  From about 2018-2019, Mr. Trahan hid part of this cash by making 20 cash deposits totaling $77,900 into bank accounts Mr. Trahan had hidden.  Like Mr. Trahan’s cash withdrawals, Mr. Trahan’s 20 cash deposits were each under $10,000.

Mr. Trahan kept his deposits and cash withdrawals below $10,000 because Mr. Trahan knew if he deposited or withdrew $10,000 or more in cash, his banks would report him to the U.S. Financial Intelligence Unit FinCen. The banks would do this by filing Currency Transaction Reports about Mr. Trahan.  Meanwhile, Mr. Trahan’s “structuring” of cash deposits or cash withdrawals, (to stop banks from filing Currency Transaction Reports), constituted a crime as set forth at 31 U.S.C. Section 5324.

Mr. Trahan also stashed cash in family residences. Stashing large sums of cash can sometimes be an indicator of bulk cash smuggling. Furthermore, Mr. Trahan had hidden money in a nominee bank account.  This basically meant Mr. Trahan hid cash by transferring it to a bank account titled in the name of Mr. Trahan’s strawperson / intermediary. On October 19, 2023 Mr. Trahan was charged with structuring via his criminal information. Then, on November 1, 2023 Mr. Trahan pleaded guilty to one count of structuring. The Court sentenced Mr. Trahan on March 4, 2024. Mr. Trahan was sentenced to five years probation and a $100,000 fine.

For some general information about the common concealment methods Mr. Trahan apparently employed, click on the following links:

• Structuring Cash- mentions USA v. White, in which an ATF Special Agent hid $99,000 from his wife, during their 2017 Nebraska divorce.
• Stashing Cash- mention of $207 million found hidden in false walls, suitcases, etc. in 2007 at Zhenli Ye Gon’s Mexico City home.
• Nominee Bank Accounts-discusses nominee incorporation services and employing friends & relatives as nominees,

Image: calcassa / Istock.com

Copyright 2024 Fred L. Abrams

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By Fred Abrams | Published June 23, 2024 | Posted in Asset Search/Fraud Investigation, Divorce & Hidden Money, Hidden Money, White-Collar Crime Generally | Comments Off on Hiding Assets By Structuring, Stashing Cash & A Nominee Bank Account