Congressman Pat Harrigan has drawn attention to the instances of money laundering linked to drug cartels in a recent string of tweets. He highlights issues in certain U.S. states where small businesses and retail stores have allegedly participated in illegal financial activities tied to organized crime. Congressman Harrigan emphasizes the need for legal reforms through his proposed legislation, the FINS Act, aimed at addressing these systemic failures.
On April 30, 2025, Congressman Harrigan tweeted about occurrences in Ohio where “three cell phone stores laundered $44 million in cartel drug proceeds.” According to Harrigan, the stores concealed the illegal funds by dividing large amounts into smaller transfers, utilizing fabricated identities to facilitate the transfer of earnings from heroin and fentanyl sales across the border.
In another post the same day, Harrigan revealed that in Atlanta, “employees at small businesses helped cartels move $40 million in drug money.” He noted that these employees exploited their anti-money laundering training to circumvent detection mechanisms, thereby enabling the wiring of funds associated with drug trafficking and organized crime.
In a subsequent tweet, Congressman Harrigan asserted these actions are “part of a larger, systemic failure that my FINS Act is written to fix.” The FINS Act intends to place wire transfers under stricter oversight, rectify existing loopholes, and empower law enforcement with the necessary tools to disrupt the flow of cash from cartels.
