Queens Accountant Sentenced for Laundering Millions for Chinese Network Tied to Mexican Cartel

Federal authorities today imposed a two-year prison sentence on a New York City accountant for her participation in an expansive Chinese money laundering operation that moved tens of millions of dollars in drug proceeds through the U.S. financial system. Rui Fang Yu, 40, of Queens, admitted to helping transfer more than $20 million derived from international narcotics trafficking. Investigators determined that the money stemmed from the sale of heroin and cocaine by a U.S.-based organization linked to a Mexican cartel. Using her professional role at a Queens airline ticket consolidator, Yu routed illicit cash through legitimate business bank accounts, a scheme that culminated in her guilty plea in August 2025 to conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Court records show that Yu’s role was central to a trade-based money laundering operation designed to evade traditional banking controls. Employed as an accountant at a company that consolidated airline tickets, she was positioned to disguise large volumes of cash as routine commercial revenue. Co-conspirators delivered bulk currency to Yu, who deposited the funds into her employer’s accounts in Flushing while falsely labeling them as payments for airline travel. By presenting narcotics proceeds as ordinary ticket sales, the operation successfully integrated millions of dollars into the global financial system and avoided the scrutiny that typically accompanies large, unexplained cash movements.

From those accounts, the money was transferred onward to a web of accounts controlled by individuals in the United States and China. The use of a legitimate, high-volume travel business created a veneer of normalcy, making the steady flow of cash appear consistent with robust ticket sales. Agents from the Drug Enforcement Administration and the Federal Bureau of Investigation painstakingly traced the transactions, ultimately exposing their true criminal origin. Authorities said the case underscores a growing dependence by Mexican drug cartels on specialized Chinese networks capable of managing the complexities of laundering profits. The exploitation of industries such as travel and logistics, investigators noted, continues to pose serious challenges for regulators.

The laundered proceeds moving through the New York hub were directly connected to a Mexican cartel’s domestic distribution operations. According to law enforcement filings, the cartel sold substantial quantities of heroin and cocaine, generating large amounts of bulk cash that needed to be absorbed quickly into the financial system. By partnering with international money launderers, the organization was able to convert street-level cash into accessible funds while reducing the risk of seizure at the border. Yu served as a crucial intermediary, supplying the financial infrastructure that transformed physical currency into digital balances and, in doing so, sustained criminal enterprises that endanger public safety.

Federal prosecutors emphasized that dismantling the financial underpinnings of drug trafficking organizations is a core objective of the Money Laundering, Narcotics, and Forfeiture Section. Targeting those who manage and move cartel money is intended to disrupt the entire narcotics supply chain. The participation of co-conspirators based in China reflected the increasingly global nature of financial crime, where value is shifted through informal networks and trade transactions to avoid detection. Investigators described a high degree of coordination, with the collection of cash in New York carefully synchronized with the distribution of funds to overseas accounts. Officials said prosecutions like this are meant to deter accountants and other professional service providers from lending their expertise to criminal groups.

The investigation into Yu’s activities was led by a coordinated effort among multiple federal agencies and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. Agents employed a range of techniques to connect the Queens cash deposits to the wider narcotics network, identifying common typologies used by Chinese money laundering organizations, including mirror transactions and the circumvention of capital controls. Such networks, authorities said, offer cartels a service by assuming the risks associated with handling bulk cash for a fee, while also enabling other clients to move money out of jurisdictions with restrictive controls. This convergence of interests has produced a resilient underground market for illicit financial services.

Accountants and other financial professionals are frequently targeted by these organizations because of their access to corporate accounts and familiarity with reporting requirements. In Yu’s case, her skills were used to fabricate legitimacy for tens of millions of dollars in drug proceeds. The two-year sentence, prosecutors said, reflects the gravity with which the courts view conduct that enables global drug trafficking through financial manipulation. Law enforcement agencies continue to scrutinize the airline and travel sectors for similar vulnerabilities that could be exploited by transnational criminal groups, while efforts to enhance business banking transparency and suspicious activity reporting remain central to prevention strategies.

Officials said removing key financial facilitators can cause meaningful, if temporary, disruption to international drug trafficking operations. When laundering channels are shut down and facilitators are incarcerated, cartels are forced to seek alternative methods that are often costlier or riskier. Sustained pressure of this kind is designed to raise the cost of illicit business and erode profitability. Authorities highlighted the importance of focusing on concealment money laundering, the stage at which illicit funds are most susceptible to detection, as a means of protecting the integrity of the U.S. financial system.

As laundering techniques continue to evolve alongside global commerce, the FBI and DEA are adapting their investigative strategies to keep pace. Trade-based schemes, while longstanding, have grown more intricate and harder to detect. Future enforcement efforts are expected to remain focused on professional facilitators who bridge criminal networks and the legitimate economy. Prosecutors described the case as a significant marker for the Eastern District of New York in its ongoing effort to curtail the financial reach of Mexican cartels and their partners, emphasizing that continued cooperation with international counterparts is essential as laundered funds are often destined for accounts beyond U.S. borders.

By fLEXI tEAM