NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Four individuals from Murfreesboro are among nine suspects charged in connection with a multi-state money laundering organization accused of handling over $20 million in fraudulent proceeds, the Department of Justice DOJ announced.
The unsealed indictment alleges the group engaged in laundering funds obtained through internet fraud schemes, including business email compromise BEC attacks targeting businesses and individuals across the U.S. and abroad.
The Murfreesboro defendants, Misha L. Cooper 50, Robert A. Cooper 66, Dazai S. Harris 34 and Edward D. Peebles 35, face charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The other co-conspirators include Samson A. Omoniyi 43, Carlesha L. Perry 36, Lauren O. Guidry 32, and Caira Y. Osby 44 from Houston, Texas, and Whitney D. Bardley 30 from Florissant, Missouri.
According to the DOJ, the group has operated since 2016, employing recruiters or “herders” to direct “money mules” who laundered funds obtained through fraudulent means. They allegedly used front companies to conceal their activities, channeling and disguising the proceeds of internet scams.
If convicted, each defendant faces up to 20 years in federal prison. The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Nashville and Salt Lake City Field Offices, with assistance from the Forensic Accountant Support Team.
The prosecution is led by Trial Attorneys Kenneth Kaplan and Jasmin Salehi Fashami of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section, alongside Assistant U.S. Attorney S. Carran Daughtrey of the Middle District of Tennessee.