Mario Amezcua Cardenas
MADISON, WI (WSAU) — A 28-year-old Marathon County man will serve federal prison time for his role in duping Wisconsin businesses out of an estimated $300,000 over two months in 2020.
Mario Amezcua Cardenas will serve 2.5 years after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering in February.
Cardenas was part of an elaborate scheme that convinced employees of both large and small businesses to take their cash on hand and deliver it to people posing as legitimate money couriers. In some cases, the callers would keep the employees on the line to keep them from double-checking the story or would use company-specific information such as the name of a higher-up or the location of a specific safe to convince the employee to make the delivery.
Investigators say Cardenas was one of the conspirators who posed as a courier and was also responsible for wiring money to individuals in Mexico who were also in on the scheme.
In selecting a 2.5-year sentence, Judge Conley said he considered the seriousness of the defendant’s criminal conduct together with his lower-level role in the conspiracy, lack of prior criminal history, and drug addiction.
Businesses from West Allis, Stevens Point, Merrill, and the Wausau Area all lost money in the scheme.
The charges against the defendants were the result of investigations conducted by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security-Homeland Security Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Merrill Police Department, Wausau Police Department, Everest Police Department, West Allis Police Department, Stevens Point Police Department, and Marathon County Sheriff’s Department, with special assistance from the Marathon County District Attorney’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Meredith P. Duchemin prosecuted this case.
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