Judge orders forfeiture in cartel money laundering case

WICHITA, Kan. – A federal judge has entered a preliminary order of forfeiture against a husband and wife accused of laundering drug money for a Mexican cartel at a small southwest Kansas bank.

U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten granted the government’s motion Friday for the $28,340 in cash seized from the home of George and Agatha Enns in Meade and another $172,720 seized at the Santa Teresa, New Mexico, port of entry.

The couple faces sentencing Feb. 27, agreeing to the forfeiture under their plea deal.

Former bank president James Kirk Friend was sentenced Monday to a year of probation for not reporting the suspicious bank activity.

Marten has granted a request to defer prosecution of former loan officer Matthew Thomas until July 2018 for failing to file a report.

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