March 24, 2011, 4:30 PM ET

http://blogs.wsj.com/corruption-currents/2011/03/24/boston-defense-lawyer-charged-with-money-laundering/?mod=google_news_blog

A well-known Boston defense lawyer was arrested Wednesday on charges of laundering drug money, a day after a top Justice Department official pledged to target attorneys, accountants and bankers who help criminal organizations fund their activities.

Robert A. George, who has represented members of the New England Mafia, is accused of helping a former client launder $200,000 in drug proceeds, and of structuring cash deposits on behalf of another client to avoid bank reporting requirements.

The former client was working with the government, and the client in the structuring deal was an undercover agent posing as a drug dealer from the Dominican Republic, according to court documents.

George declined requests for comment by the Boston Globe, but one of his lawyers, Rosemary Scapicchio, told the newspaper that he denies the allegations.

The U.S. attorney’s office in Massachusetts is handling George’s case, which was investigated by the Boston units of the Drug Enforcement Administration and Internal Revenue Service.

But reaction to the case — the Globe reported that George’s arrest sent shock waves across the Massachusetts legal community — helps explain why prosecutors in Washington are realigning their priorities.

Jennifer Shasky, chief of the department’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section, told a group of bank compliance professionals on Tuesday that prosecuting lawyers and other so-called gatekeepers was “a top priority” of her unit, which handles cases nationwide.

George is charged with money laundering, money laundering conspiracy and structuring. He faces up to 25 years in prison if convicted, the Justice Department said.

The lawyer is known for representing Francis P. “Cadillac Frank’’ Salemme, former boss of the Patriarca crime family, and Christopher M. McCowen, the trash collector who was convicted of the rape and murder of Cape Cod fashion writer Christa Worthington.