MoneyGram admits wire fraud, pays $100M

by Bill Catlin, Minnesota Public Radio

MoneyGram International, the money transfer operation once based in the Twin Cities, has agreed to surrender $100 million and admit to criminally assisting wire fraud.

According to the Justice Department, tens of thousands of U.S. victims lost at least $100 million between 2004 and 2009. The company was based in St. Louis Park at the time.

Prosecutors say the company was aware of fraudulent activity but rarely acted to terminate agents found by internal investigations to be committing fraud.

On Friday, the company said it cooperated with the investigation and has taken corrective actions. It is now under investigation by a group of nine state attorneys general.