Washington man gets five years for laundering $97M in fraud proceeds

A Newcastle, Washington, man has received five years in prison for helping move fraud proceeds through bank accounts and crypto exchanges. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Geoffrey K. Auyeung pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Prosecutors said nearly $100 million passed through accounts he opened and linked to cryptocurrency platforms.

Auyeung sentenced in Seattle federal court

U.S. District Judge John C. Coughenour sentenced Auyeung in Seattle federal court. The judge said the sentence followed “the scope and magnitude of this fraud.” Auyeung was arrested in August 2024 and pleaded guilty last February.

According to prosecutors, he continued communicating with coconspirators after his indictment and arrest. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd said Auyeung helped fraudsters take investor funds. “Mr. Auyeung facilitated a fraud, developed by others,” Floyd said in a statement.

Floyd said victims believed they were sending money to legitimate escrow accounts. He also said Auyeung later routed illicit fees through his wife’s bank accounts. One victim traveled from the United Kingdom to attend the sentencing hearing. The victim told Auyeung, “You caused a lot of pain.”

Oil and gas scheme used bank and crypto accounts

Court records said Auyeung created at least nine entities to receive investor funds. The entities used names tied to oil, gas, logistics, escrow, and energy services. From August 2022 through August 2024, coconspirators told victims they were investing in oil storage. Prosecutors said the storage sites involved Rotterdam in the Netherlands and Houston.

Victims were told they could profit by renting tank storage to others. After payments reached Auyeung-controlled accounts, funds moved to other accounts, offshore destinations, or crypto exchanges.

Prosecutors said Auyeung opened at least 81 bank accounts across 24 financial institutions. He also opened 19 accounts across eight cryptocurrency exchanges. Between June 2022 and July 2024, those accounts received $97.1 million in third-party deposits. The government said all deposits in the accounts represented fraud proceeds.

Bitcoin and stablecoin transfers moved proceeds

Authorities said Auyeung used exchanges including Gemini, BitStamp, and Coinbase to buy crypto. The purchases included Bitcoin, Tether, USD Coin, and Ethereum. Much of the crypto later moved to Binance accounts, according to court records. Prosecutors said individuals in Nigeria and Russia controlled those Binance accounts.

In sentencing papers, prosecutors said Auyeung helped hide proceeds from financial institutions and law enforcement. They said he used false transaction descriptions and fictitious supporting documents.

Prosecutors also said he moved victim funds among accounts with no business purpose. They said he rapidly converted fiat funds into crypto and sent assets to coconspirator-controlled addresses. Auyeung received at least $4,078,348 in commission payments, according to prosecutors. They said he demanded higher commissions as he became more aware of the fraud.

Restitution and forfeiture remain pending

The court referred the restitution calculation to a magistrate judge. Prosecutors asked for $24,707,031 in restitution for victims. Auyeung will forfeit about $2.3 million seized from bank accounts and his home. 

Additionally, he will forfeit an Audi SQ8, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He agreed not to contest the civil forfeiture of about $7.1 million seized from crypto wallets. He also agreed to surrender about $300,000 from bank accounts toward restitution.

Judge Coughenour praised prosecutors’ efforts to recover funds for victims. “The conduct was superb,” the judge said during sentencing. Homeland Security Investigations and IRS Criminal Investigation handled the case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jehiel I. Baer and Yunah Chung prosecuted the matter.