Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul announced today that a suburban Cook County man has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to prison for laundering millions of dollars.
Michael A. Venegas, 24, of Hanover Park, Illinois, pleaded guilty to one count of money laundering, a Class 1 felony. Kane County Circuit Court Judge D.J. Tegeler sentenced Venegas to six years in prison.
“Money laundering fuels illicit drug sales and makes our neighborhoods less safe by attempting to hide ongoing criminal activity,” Raoul stated. “I will continue to partner with the Illinois State Police and local law enforcement agencies to hold perpetrators accountable and reduce crime across Illinois.”
Raoul’s office charged Venegas and co-defendant Hugh Collins in 2022 following an investigation by the Illinois State Police’s North Central Narcotics Task Force. The investigation revealed that Venegas was selling cannabis and other controlled substances via Snapchat throughout the northwest suburbs of Chicago.
In April 2021, investigators executed a search warrant at Venegas’ home on Dogwood Lane in Hanover Park. They found evidence of drug dealing and extensive money laundering activities. The investigation uncovered multiple large cash deposits into a bank account, a stock account with a balance exceeding $1.6 million, and evidence of "chip walking." Chip walking involved taking large amounts of cash to a casino only to cash out casino chips after playing briefly.
“ISP enforcement groups and multi-jurisdictional drug task forces are critical to identifying and stopping criminal behavior, including money laundering and drug trafficking,” said ISP Director Brendan F. Kelly. “ISP is focused on combating trafficking - drug, gun, and human trafficking - and will work to put an end to the havoc these criminals wreak on our communities.”
Assistant Attorney General Andrew Whitfield prosecuted the case for Raoul’s Statewide Grand Jury Bureau.