Volodath

Structuring. This whole thread reeks of Structuring. Which is a crime.

I deposit my MOs at the bank most convenient to the location where the MO is cut, and within as short of a time frame as possible. I don't like carry large amounts of cash equivalents on me and deposit them quickly.

This is the reason my deposits vary between banks. I don't mind tending multiple bank accounts if it means I need to spend less time with 'hot' items on me.

Some places don't always have banks nearby, or I need to tie something up in another part of town, and I deposit it at a bank in that area as soon as my time is free.

tymothy

We have this weird thing called a justice system where you can't be convicted unless there's sufficient evidence you committed of a crime. And just depositing money orders isn't a crime.

I deposited >$20k in MO with USAA in the last month. Probably won't do that too often, but no issue. Just deposited it all by mail.

skibum7732

Pooping where you eat will not only get your bank acct closed, but all cc's by that issuer. If you want easy though, go for it. I do not, and will not, have any banking relationships with any of the major cc issuers. If I lose a deposit acct, its very easy to open a new one.

cbn42

Depositing money orders isn't a crime, but structuring is a crime per se. It doesn't matter if you aren't doing anything else illegal. If you break up your deposits in order to avoid reporting or record keeping, you are structuring and you could theoretically be prosecuted and convicted.

AnalystGuy

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinio...y.html?hpid=z5

Although this case is about cash, the legal authority used applies to MO as well. And actually just about anything of value.

What do you mean you are seizing my mileage accounts?

hamhead

There is a big difference between the volume of a MSer and a store.

$35k was seized. This means they deposited $30k+ in one day broken up into multiple deposits.

How many MSers do you know depositing $30k in MO in one day at a single bank broken up into at least 4 deposits?

If I was an IRS agent I'd be suspicious of that activity too.

ashap

I am super jealous of 3 months of vacation!

Do you mind sharing what you explained? I'm assuming you told the truth and kept it simple, but correct me if I'm wrong.

I kinda think the same. I don't have any cards with my primary bank, but I do most of the MO deposits in there. Because I also have direct deposits and everything else flowing through there I feel like I have less of a chance of standing out.

My secondary account is online banking and it's all MO. But I've had a relationship (CC) with that bank for over 15 years so I feel pretty comfortable staying within their deposit limits.

MsArbi

Deleted.

prasha11

Most of the business deal/offers are structured for highest profitability or market share. All the CC and prepaid are structured offers by the bank. 'Criminal Intent' has to be proved beyond a reasonable doubt for a conviction of 'structuring'. Obviously MSers are capitalists, that's not a crime USA!
Obviously, U can't stop banks from closing your account in a country where consumer protection is surrendered for security and fraud prevention.

MsArbi

Deleted.

uneeq

You guys have too much faith in the justice system. It'd be wise to avoid dealing with it altogether and make a little less profit MSing.

prasha11

That is because the Consumer Protection Agency is in hiding and has become irrelevant. FDIC should be protecting us but are paid off (our money?) by the banksters . If the banksters keep acting tough it will hit them back like a boomerang....The example is MVD, once very popular is now struggling but some keep beating a dead horse! in contrast BB is smooth like butter...5K every month fearless

silver6054

Apart from costs in defending, the issue is that "beyond a reasonable doubt" means "beyond a reasonable doubt in the mind of jurors". MSing is a strange thing. You have all those money orders (which is odd) and you have a bunch of different account at various banks (which is very odd, many jurors will have just one) and you go round depositing < $10K in one and go on to the next and do the same. Yes, you are up to something beyond a reasonable doubt because honest folk just don't do that.

ETA: And the details are even more suspicious. You bought the money orders yourself, at a loss, using a bunch of debit cards, even though you have all those bank accounts??? Guilty is too weak a word!

GetawaysRus

Not so. Maybe this is dependent on your branch. I've got 4 Chase branches in my area. I've not had any problems depositing 2K-4K of money orders at a time at any of these branches. But I'm a small time player. I've probably only done a max of 6K-8K in a month. And I can only remember one time when I deposited more than 4K in one shot.

Tester22

My area of legal expertise is admittedly not in tax law and money laundering but based on my limited interaction with the DOJ, as well as some of my law school classmate’s interaction with the DOJ and IRS, I’m leery to mess with MOs to any significant extent. The laws about money laundering are far more complex and screwed up than most people realize. While in the end you might be able to clear your name, if the feds decide to come after you it will ruin your life for many months and require a huge expenditures on lawyers (although some lawyers do take CCs :-)). Specifically, I am referencing a federal law that makes it a crime, if you acquire cash or money order in excess of 10K, to split them up into deposits of under 10K to avoid filling out tax forms at the bank. I dabble in money orders but only in small quantities. Normally just to liquidate a small number of gift cards I got with bonus spend. Never more than $500 a month.

I am generally not terribly worried about banks shutting me down because of MS so to me the risk here is not getting an account shut. If that happens, in the long run who really cares. There are always more banks. The risk is getting an over anxious AUSA deciding they want to make you a statistic and get a money laundering conviction. The risk of it happening to you is obviously incredibly low but if it does it would ruin your life for many months or years. As other people have said, it’s all about comfort with risk. Personally, I will mess with banks but am deathly afraid of a federal indictment and have no tolerance for any risk that could lead to that outcome.