Criminals Hid Guns, Cash, Drugs in Iris-Scanning Vaults in a Strip Mall, Feds Say
https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/akgwwb/criminals-hid-guns-cash-drugs-in-iris-scanning-vaults-in-a-strip-mall-feds-say
For years, U.S. Private Vaults sat in a strip mall in Beverly Hills next to a nail salon. It promised customers easy access to secure safe deposit boxes completely anonymously, and required no ID of any kind from customers. “We don’t even want to know your name,” said one advertisement. The Los Angeles Times broke the story on April 2.
The Drug Enforcement Administration seized the contents of the boxes in March. According to the feds, U.S. Private Vaults was at the center of a criminal conspiracy involving drugs, guns, money laundering, and safe deposit boxes. According to the DEA, the company encouraged drug dealers to stash controlled substances in its safe deposit boxes, advised its customers on how to avoid government scrutiny, used a nearby gold business to help its customers launder money, and facilitated drug deals inside the business.