California man faces life for illegally operating a Bitcoin ATM

A 25-year-old Westwood man has agreed to plead guilty to federal charges for illegally operating a cryptocurrency exchange and a bitcoin ATM where he laundered up to $25 million in cash and crypto for individuals, including drug dealers. 

An announcement from the U.S. Justice Department on Friday said Kunal Kalra — who also goes by "Kumar," "shecklemayne" and "coinman" — was charged with distribution of methamphetamine, operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, laundering of monetary instruments, and failure to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program. The maximum possible sentence is life in prison.  

According to the release, from May 2015 through October 2017, Kalra operated a crypto exchange where he sold and bought bitcoins for fiat currency. He made a commission on every trade. Some of his customers received bitcoin from selling narcotics on the darknet, he said in his plea deal. 

Kara set up bank accounts in the names of others and fake businesses, which allowed him to launder the money. He also admitted to operating a bitcoin ATM, where his customers could buy and sell bitcoin for cash. Because he did not check their IDs or have a camera installed on the bitcoin ATM, his customers were able to conduct their transactions anonymously. Authorities also said Kalra sold two pounds of meth to an undercover law enforcement agent. 

As part of the probe, law enforcement seized nearly $889,000 in cash from Kalra's bank accounts and vehicle, as well as 54.3 bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, worth more than $500,000. Kalra is expected to make his first court appearance next month.