U.S. charges ex-TD Bank employee with helping to launder money to Colombia

TD Bank signage is pictured in the financial district in Toronto on Sept. 8, 2023. (Andrew Lahodynskyj / The Canadian Press)

TORONTO -

A former TD Bank employee based in Florida was arrested and charged with facilitating money laundering to Colombia, New Jersey's attorney general said on Wednesday, in the first such arrest since the Canadian lender paid a US$3 billion fine.

TD Bank's U.S. arm pleaded guilty in October to conspiracy to commit money laundering, becoming the first bank in the U.S. to do so. It also is the largest bank to plead guilty to U.S. Bank Secrecy Act program failures.

Regulators levied hefty fines, an asset cap and asked to install government-ordered monitors for, among other things, failures in TD's compliance system that enabled laundering of up to US$670 million from the sale of narcotics.

Dozens of people have been arrested or charged in the U.S. in connection with money laundering involving TD in recent years.

In the latest case, Leonardo Ayala, 24, who worked at a TD Bank outlet in Doral, Florida between February and November 2023, is accused of assisting a money laundering network by issuing dozens of debit cards for accounts opened in the names of shell companies in exchange for bribes, court documents show.

Those accounts were used to launder proceeds from narcotic trafficking through cash withdrawals at ATMs in Colombia, according to a statement by New Jersey's attorney general.

"The investigation has revealed that millions of dollars were laundered to Colombia through accounts Ayala serviced," the statement said.

Ayala could not immediately be reached for comment.

"We identified the activity, reported it, and cooperated closely with authorities in their investigation. We continue to actively support their efforts," a TD spokesperson said.

In October, U.S. officials said TD bank employees received at least US$57,000 in gift cards in 2020 and 2021 from one criminal who moved more than US$400 million in transactions through the bank.

In one case, money laundering networks deposited funds in the U.S. and quickly withdrew them using ATMs in Colombia, ultimately laundering millions, the U.S. Justice department said in October. Five TD employees conspired with the network, the Justice Department said.

The charge of money laundering conspiracy carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of US$500,000 or twice the amount involved in the offense, whichever is greater.

(Reporting by Nivedita Balu in Toronto; Editing by Paul Simao)