Benzion Zirkind
Hasidic Chabad member convicted in international drug money laundering scheme
| Benzion Zirkind (also Bentzion Zirkind)
| |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Canadian / American |
| Occupation | Hasidic rabbi, family business |
| Known for | Conviction for conspiracy to commit money laundering in drug trafficking scheme |
Benzion Zirkind (also spelled Bentzion Zirkind) is a Hasidic member of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement from the Zirkind family of Montreal who was a defendant in a major US federal money laundering case tied to international drug trafficking.[1]
He is the nephew of Zalman Zirkind (secretary of the revoked Colel Chabad Lubavitch Foundation of Israel) and son of Mark Zirkind (convicted in 2014 in Canada for transporting over $1 million in suspected drug proceeds). Benzion resided in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, and was arrested on 21 July 2020 in the Southern District of New York on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering.[1]
The scheme involved laundering tens of millions of dollars in drug proceeds through networks spanning New York, Canada, Hong Kong, Israel, Colombia and Mexico. Zalman Zirkind pleaded guilty and received 84 months; Benzion mounted a defense but was convicted and sentenced to 1 year and 1 day in prison in February 2021.[1]
Zirkind family members, including Benzion, have been linked to Chabad-Lubavitch activities in Montreal and New York, primarily through family involvement in Chabad educational and charitable networks.
See also
Zalman Zirkind Colel Chabad Lubavitch Foundation of Israel Chabad-Lubavitch
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Matthew Russell Lee, For Money Laundering Zalmund Zirkind Gets 84 Months Inner City Press, 15 January 2021.