A 66-year-old Owings Mills finance executive has been charged by federal authorities with money laundering for allegedly taking $425,000 in drug money to front a real estate transaction.
Stewart D. Sachs was charged by criminal information in U.S. District Court in connection with a March 19, 2013 transaction. No additional details were provided in the charging document.
Sachs is the owner of the Worthington Alternative Capital, and according to a biography on his company website was previously president of Bay Capital Corp., a national mortgage company, as well as president and CEO of Regal Savings Bank in Owings Mills. He served a two-year stint as president of Har Sinai Congregation.
The transaction allegedly occurred one day after Sachs was charged five years ago with failing to disclose a cash transaction. In that case, federal authorities said he failed to disclose repayments on a $151,000 loan his company made in 2011 to an Aberdeen man who later pleaded guilty to federal drug charges in Pennsylvania.
Sachs was accused of failing to comply with IRS reporting requirements for cash transactions involving more than $10,000. That charge was dropped 10 days later.
The new charge allegedly occurred two years later and involves a much larger amount of cash.
According to tha criminal complaint in the 2013 case, Sachs told investigators that his company specialized in commercial lending and many of his clients were individuals who purchase homes and then resell them upon completion of renovations.
Andrew Alperstein, one of Sachs’ attorneys, declined to comment. Attempts to reach Sachs through his company were not successful.