Former Employees of a Massive Bank Now Sentenced to Prison
Two former employees of the massive bank TD Bank have been sentenced to prison for money laundering, according to the Justice Department.
The report, released on July 15 states that former TD assistant store manager Wilfredo Aquino processed bank checks totaling a whopping $92 million for money laundering network leader Da Ying Sze.
In exchange, Aquino received approximately $11,000 worth of retail gift cards.
He was sentenced 46 months in prison, just under four years.
“According to court documents, Wilfredo Aquino, 47, of Manhattan, New York, leveraged his position as a TD Bank assistant store manager to facilitate a money laundering network’s movement of hundreds of millions of dollars through TD Bank accounts from 2019 to February 2021.
During that time, the leader of the network, Da Ying Sze, also known as David, and his co-conspirators moved approximately $474 million through TD Bank accounts by depositing cash at TD Bank stores in New York, New Jersey, and elsewhere.
In February 2022, David pleaded guilty to coordinating a $653 million money laundering conspiracy, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, and bribing bank employees in connection with financial transactions,” the Fed report read.
The second ex-TD Bank employee, Edward Low, took bribes and passed confidential customer information to co-conspirators outside the bank, who then used it to access customer accounts and steal money, the DOJ said.
Low received at least $26,700 in bribes and facilitated $484,572.16 in fraud at TD Bank.
He was sentenced to two years in prison.
Both men pleaded guilty in January and February of this year.
TD Bank’s History of Money Laundering
TD Bank has a dark history of money laundering, which has consequently made them the largest bank to be held accountable for failures related to the Bank Secrecy Act, which is designed to prevent financial institutions from being exploited for illicit transactions.
A previous arrest involves 24-year-old Leonardo Ayala, who worked at a TD Bank branch in Doral, Florida, from February to November 2023.
Ayala was accused of being a key player in a money laundering network, allegedly issuing dozens of debit cards linked to accounts opened under fictitious companies in exchange for bribes.
These accounts were reportedly used to launder money obtained from drug trafficking, with cash withdrawals being made at ATMs located in Colombia.
According to New Jersey’s Attorney General, “The investigation has revealed that millions of dollars were laundered to Colombia through accounts Ayala serviced.”
This event followed even earlier disclosures that TD Bank employees received at least $57,000 in gift cards from a single criminal in 2020 and 2021, who facilitated over $400 million in transactions through the bank.
The U.S. Justice Department has noted that money laundering networks often deposited funds into U.S. accounts and quickly withdrew them using ATMs in Colombia, successfully laundering millions in the process.
The charges against Ayala included conspiracy to commit money laundering, a serious offense that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a fine of $500,000 or twice the amount involved in the offense, whichever is greater.
TD Bank’s CEO stepped down in January of 2025 amid the bank’s money laundering scandals, earlier than anticipated.
And in 2024, TD Bank’s profits took a massive hit by money laundering fines, with its retail business falling 34% compared to 2023.
Also Read: FDIC places 66 banks on ‘Problem Bank List’
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