The Treasury Department reported that it has...

The Treasury Department reported that it has fined a Texas currency dealer $3.01 million in the first civil penalty imposed in the department’s efforts to crack down on money laundering. The fine, for violations of the Bank Secrecy Act, was levied on Oscar’s Money Exchange of Hidalgo, Tex., and its owner, Oscar Ortiz Alvarez, and another man, Antonio Franco. Franco’s organization was accused of laundering $5.56 million through Oscar’s Money Exchange. In June, 1987, federal agents seized $2.55 million. The remaining $3.01 million was transported to Mexico by Alvarez and others without filing the necessary forms with the U.S. Customs Service, the department said.