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Bakersfield, California, March 18, 2008
Surinder Singh
NRI Businessman, Jagdeep Singh Sidhu, 47, co-owner of India Currency
Exchanges and Discount Mart in Bakersfield, has pleaded guilty
in the United States District Court in Fresno to one count of
conducting an illegal money transmitting business, according to
the statement of Assistant US Attorney Mark E Cullers.
Sidhu in his plea agreement has admitted to transferring USD
171,710 to foreign locations without being properly licensed by
the State of California.
Jagdeep Sidhu faces a fine of up to $250,000 and up to five
years in prison. Laundering money is serious issue for the US
Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement
and the Criminal Investigation Division of Internal Revenue Service.
The actual sentence would be determined at the discretion of the
court after consideration of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines.
In 2006:
- The US Department of Justice's US Attorney's office for the
Eastern District of California had said that Jagdeep Singh Sidhu,
Udhebhan Singh Sidhu, Daljit Singh Sidhu and Manjit Singh Sidhu
had been charged with operating an unlicensed money transmitting
business with two Bakersfield area companies through which they
allegedly sent over $6 million to recipients in the other countries
- Jagdeep Singh Sidhu and co-defendant Udhebhan Sidhu were also
accused of structuring bank deposits to evade currency reporting
requirements by making a series of deposits in amounts less
than the $10,000 threshold, a separate federal offense
- According to the US Attorney's April 6 statement, about $3
million was so structured in the course of the alleged money
transmitting activities.
In 2004, a federal investigator began to investigate the business
suspicious activity at Sidhu’s India Currency Exchange.
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One community leader told us that Sidhu was just transferring
his client's money overseas without a proper license but this
was not laundering money or “financing any organizations.
Sidhu was providing a service to local Indian people (NRIs) who
were interested in sending money home to India.
Now, a prosecutor felt that as long as laundering money or financing
to any organizations is not involved, he would recommend a sentence
at “the low end” of the range of penalties
Schedule for sentence is on June 9
