Louisville residents charged with money laundering conspiracy | News

On By Rgal Nv

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (KT) – A federal grand jury has returned indictments charging three Louisville residents with money laundering conspiracy, money laundering, obstructing government proceedings and falsifying related records to a federal investigation.

According to the indictment, Joseph Lanham, 41, Laura Lanham, 64, and Richard “Ricky” Elbe II, 43, between April 2016 and May 2023, conspired to launder the proceeds of Joseph’s drug trafficking Lanham, primarily through real estate deals and other large purchases made with drug money.

Joseph Lanham is also charged with four counts of money laundering for conducting transactions over $10,000 with criminal proceeds, one count of obstructing governmental proceedings, namely administrative proceedings of asset forfeiture, and one count of falsifying documents related to a federal investigation. Laura Lanham is also charged with one count of money laundering for making transactions over $10,000 with proceeds of crime. All three had their first appearance before a US magistrate judge.

If convicted, Joseph Lanham faces a maximum sentence of 85 years in prison, Laura Lanham could receive up to 30 years in prison, and Elble faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. There is no parole in the federal system.

This case is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, with assistance from the Jeffersontown Police Department, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Department of Louisville Metro Police and Kentucky State Police.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Corinne E. Keel and Erin G. McKenzie are prosecuting this case.

This effort is part of a federal operation of the Organized Drug Crime Task Force (OCDETF). The goal of the OCDETF is to identify, disrupt, and dismantle higher-level criminal organizations that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach.

Additional information about the OCDETF program is available at www.justice.gov/OCDETF.