|
Article Courtesy of The Sun
Sentinel
By Paula
McMahon
Published December 12, 2016
The Delray Beach woman who helped prominent lawyer
Alan Koslow launder money in an FBI sting was sentenced Thursday to
house arrest and probation for her role in the crime.
Susan Mohr, 57, pleaded guilty to a federal money-laundering conspiracy
charge earlier this year. The judge sentenced her to one year of house
arrest and five years of probation and ordered her to pay $8,500 in
restitution.
|
Koslow recruited
Mohr, a four-time cancer survivor he met while both were
fundraising for cancer charities, to help him disguise
the source of money he thought came from drug dealers
and illegal gambling, the defense said.
The case was actually an undercover FBI sting that
targeted Koslow.
Mohr told the judge Thursday that she was "in financial
desperation" when she agreed to help Koslow by moving
money through her business account in late 2012 and
2013.
Mohr, who ran a small gifts business, said she needed
money to pay for medications and treatment for her
cancer and other health problems.
"I truly am sorry for what I did and it will never
happen again," Mohr told U.S. District Judge William
Dimitrouleas on Thursday during her sentencing hearing
in federal court.
In a letter she wrote to the judge, Mohr said Koslow
"represented me in some legal matters, so I have to say
I trusted him as a friend and lawyer. I never really
second-guessed him but I also wasn't thinking with
clarity at that time."
Koslow, 62, formerly of Hollywood and Boca Raton, was
one of the most prominent lawyers and lobbyists in South
Florida before he was charged and pleaded guilty to a
$220,000 money-laundering conspiracy earlier this year.
Koslow worked for the powerhouse law firm of Becker
and Poliakoff and specialized in gaming, casino,
government and land development law. He resigned and
was disbarred when the criminal charges were filed
against him.
Koslow, 62, is currently serving his prison term in the
Federal Detention Center in downtown Miami. He was
sentenced to a year and a day. With standard time off
for good behavior, he is expected to serve about 10 ½
months and is scheduled for release on Sept. 23.
The prosecution
and defense both urged the judge to give Mohr a lighter
punishment than Koslow, partly because she played a
lesser role in the crime. They also said her multiple
health issues would pose serious problems for the U.S.
Bureau of Prisons and that she would not receive the
standard of care in prison that she needs. |
|
Alan Koslow, 62, was sentenced to one year and
one day in federal prison for his role in a money-laundering
conspiracy. The former lawyer was caught in an FBI sting. He is
imprisoned at the Federal Detention Center in downtown Miami.
|
The judge said he had some questions about that and remarked that he has
imprisoned people with more severe health problems than Mohr.
"Prison is not a place that anybody wants to be, particularly if you
have medical problems," the judge said.
But he said he was willing to go along with the recommendation from the
prosecution and defense because of the specific circumstances of Mohr's
case. Mohr, who survived breast cancer, uterine cancer, leukemia and
lymphoma, is a caregiver for her partner who testified he suffered a
stroke that left him legally blind and disabled.
|
