Hollywood man arrested in $2.6M international penny stock fraud money laundering sting
Hollywood-resident James Robert Shipman Jr. is one of three men arrested in a $2.6 million money laundering sting, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York announced last week.
Shipman and one of his co-conspirators, Kenneth Ardell Landgaard, were arrested after flying to an airport in New York. The duo was going to take $2.2 million to reportedly launder through Panamanian and Belize banks, according to the Attorney’s Office. The third defendant, Michael Dodd, was arrested later in Manhattan.
The defendants’ arrests were the result of a money laundering sting coordinated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, and other federal agencies.
Shipman’s attorney Raymond Colon did not return a request for comment.
Shipman was a business partner of Landgaard and Dodd, according to a court document. Dodd reportedly would set up off-shore foundations in Panama for clients and coordinated transport with Landgaard on private jets. Dodd is a U.S. citizen living in Panama and Landgaard is a U.S. citizen residing in the United States that owns and operates Magjets Group, an aviation company in Panama City.
As part of the sting, an undercover FBI agent posed as a corrupt stock promoter who was looking to move money. He contacted Dodd and enlisted his services. Dodd coordinated a transfer of cash, requesting that the funds be in a Louis Vuitton duffel bag, according to a court document.
Undercover agents met Shipman at the airport for one transfer, but the cash was in a Wal-Mart bag. Shipman reportedly expressed frustration with the agents. “You know why? You know why they do that? Because cops can’t get the authority to buy a Louis Vuitton bag, it’s too expensive,” Shipman said, according to a court document.
During the sting, Landgaard called an undercover agent and informed the agent that Shipman could arrange off-shore accounts in Hong Kong, the Bahamas, and the Cayman Islands, according to a court document.
The trio was arrested on July 8.
In convicted of the charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering, transfer and transmit money, and conduct financial transaction affecting interstate commerce, the defendants face as much as 20 years in prison.
