August 28, 2007

Seattle mortgage broker sentenced for role in money laundering case
Aided drug dealers in the purchase of property

SEATTLE - A Seattle mortgage broker was sentenced today to 18 months in federal prison for his role in a money-laundering scheme investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.)

Todd Love, 50, pleaded guilty in August 2006 to charges of conspiring to engage in money laundering, admitting he forged documents that helped several convicted drug dealers buy homes and property with drug money. Following his prison time, Love will be on three years of supervised release.

According to court documents, Love acted as the mortgage broker for convicted drug dealer Robert Kesling who was purchasing a home in Woodinville, Wash. Love received a $190,000 cash down payment from Kesling and gave it to Joel Manalang, a real estate attorney, who placed it in an escrow account. Love knew the cash was proceeds from drug trafficking.

Love fabricated documents to help Kesling qualify for a mortgage by creating a letter from Kesling's father claiming the cash had been a gift. He then created a letter from a local accounting firm claiming Kesling was in the property management business and had employed the firm to do his taxes. Kesling had never been a client of the firm.

In a separate transaction in the summer of 2005, Love falsified documents to facilitate the purchase of waterfront lots in Tacoma, Wash., by Bernard Casey, another convicted drug dealer. Love arranged for Manalang to again move money through his escrow account for the sale, falsifying paperwork claiming Casey had worked for a video conference center when in fact he had never worked there. Love used a relative who was employed at the video conference center to falsely verify the employment.

Love also helped a third drug dealer, Joshua Macke, who gave Love several hundred thousand dollars to invest in real estate. Again, Love passed the money onto Manalang to deposit in an escrow account. Love used a portion of this money for his own expenses, knowing that it was the proceeds from drug trafficking.

"Laundering of illicit proceeds from drug trafficking has consequences," said Leigh Winchell, special agent in charge for ICE's Office of Investigations in Seattle. "ICE will continue to aggressively investigate cases where individuals attempt to use our nation's financial infrastructure to facilitate and conceal criminal activity."

In November 2006, Manalang was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for his role in the scheme. Kesling is serving a 17-year prison sentence and Macke is serving six years in prison. Casey is scheduled for sentencing in federal court in November 2007.

ICE investigated this case jointly with the Drug Enforcement Administration.

-- ICE --

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was established in March 2003 as the largest investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security. ICE is comprised of five integrated divisions that form a 21st century law enforcement agency with broad responsibilities for a number of key homeland security priorities.

  Last Modified: