Seven defendants were charged last week for their roles in a sophisticated, organized scam that used multiple shell construction corporations to defraud workers’ compensation insurers, operated an unlicensed money service business, and processed nearly $100 million in payroll, according to Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier.

According to the investigation, the defendants created and controlled a series of shell corporations that obtained workers’ compensation insurance policies by significantly underreporting the number of employees and the amount of payroll.

The defendants then “rented” the certificates of insurance to otherwise uninsured subcontractors for a fee. In parallel, the same network processed and cashed the contractors’ payroll checks—often for cash-paid laborers, including illegal aliens—through an unlicensed money service business.

Physical surveillance established that the defendants worked and operated from the same location to process payroll checks and distribute cash directly to workers.

Over the course of the investigation, nearly $100 million was processed through the shell companies and dispersed as payroll.

Law enforcement seized more than $2.4 million in connection with the case.

The defendants face charges that include Organized Scheme to Defraud, Operating as an Unlicensed Money Service Business, and Workman’s Compensation Fraud. Additional charges are pending against certain defendants including Money Laundering and Operating as an Unlicensed Money Transmitter.

“This criminal enterprise systematically exploited Florida’s workers’ compensation system for personal gain,” said Attorney General James Uthmeier. “They undercut legitimate contractors, defrauded insurance companies, and operated an illegal money-service operation that moved nearly $100 million.”

The investigation was led by the Broward Sheriff’s Office Division of Covert Operations Money Laundering Task Force, with assistance from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office and the Office of Statewide Prosecution, the AG’s office said.