Overview
- Federal agents arrested Marcos Arturo Kleiman Tronllan in Miami and charged him with one count of murder‑for‑hire under 18 U.S.C. §1958, a charge that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years and a fine.
- Investigators say undercover Homeland Security Investigations agents asked Kleiman in February to convert cash into crypto and that he converted roughly $750,000 into cryptocurrency for the operation.
- Prosecutors allege Kleiman agreed to pay $40,000 to have a Mexican businessman kidnapped and killed, making two earlier $5,000 advance deposits and later delivering another $5,000 in cash.
- Authorities say agents showed Kleiman staged photos and a video purporting to show the victim killed, quoted him replying, “Okay. Count on…count on it,” and say he then transferred about 25,000 USDT as a final payment.
- The case grows from a broader probe of MoneyFlip, a registered money services business, for possible Bank Secrecy Act violations and alleged laundering of drug proceeds, and prosecutors may seek Kleiman’s extradition to San Diego for trial.