Money laundering is the process of disguising the source of proceeds from criminal activity. The primary statute addressing money laundering is the Money Laundering Control Act of 1986, or the MLCA. This statute applies to many white-collar crimes. For instance, a public official who tries to hide bribery proceeds may commit money laundering.

I.   Laundering of Monetary Instruments – 18 U.S.C. § 1956

The MLCA contains two statutes. The first and most widely used is § 1956 of...