Pastor charged in money laundering scheme

MIAMI, May 19 (UPI) -- U.S. officials say a Florida pastor led a real estate money laundering operation on behalf of Miami cocaine dealers.

A federal indictment unsealed Monday in Miami alleged Garry Souffrant, 33, identified as the pastor of God First Ministries in Miami Gardens, Fla., and a former supervisor at Boca Raton Fire Rescue, conspired to launder drug money by buying more a than a dozen residential properties, The Miami Herald reported.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan said the indictments also included counts against Souffrant's wife Yvonne, 33, and his brother, Gamaliel Souffrant, 43, all of Broward County, Fla.

Prosecutors say all three defendants operated a brokerage company called Progressive Real Estate of Broward as a front to use hundreds of thousands of dollars in cocaine profits to buy homes and luxury cars, the Herald reported.