Jun.28, 2010, 11:03:45

Cordell Simmons, 59, wired nearly US$80,000 worth of ill-gotten gains to accounts in Jamaica and the United States so that criminals abroad could collect the cash.

Simmons was paid around $100 for every $1,000 he wired abroad by drug dealers who wanted to get the “dirty money” out of Bermuda, a court heard.

He made dozens of transfers for amounts of up to $3,000 at a time through Western Union and MoneyGram between June 2008 and November 2009.

Simmons, who was jailed for by Senior Magistrate Archibald Warner, told Magistrates' Court he used the money he was paid to finance his drug habit.

Police said the case should send out a strong message to anyone involved in money laundering.

“This is how the drug dealers and other criminals try to get the proceeds of crime out of Bermuda,” said Detective Sergeant Grant Tomkins from the Financial Crime Unit.

“We are doing everything we can to stop this from going on in Bermuda and that fits in well with our approach of tackling crimes from various angles.”

“This case should be a warning to people being used by drug dealers to get money off the island. They may think they will never get caught but this case shows that is not correct,” he added.

Simmons, who lived at the Salvation Army in Pembroke, admitted two counts of money laundering.