LOS ANGELES (AP) - A California man has been convicted of laundering ransom money for two dozen Mexican citizens who were held hostage by a kidnappers who posed as human smugglers.
Luis Francisco Murillo Morfin of National City was convicted Wednesday of conspiracy to launder money. He faces up to 10 years in federal prison.
Federal prosecutors say in 2015, the victims were picked up in northern Mexico, hidden in car trunks, passed through a phony border checkpoint and then taken to a house in Tijuana where they were threatened, beaten and some were raped.
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Authorities say the gang held the victims hostage while extorting money from their relatives. More than $60,000 was deposited in Murillo’s bank account, and prosecutors say he passed it on to other members of the kidnapping organization in Mexico.
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