A Wakefield resident, Christiane Fischer, was found guilty of money laundering conspiracy after a six-day jury trial that concluded on November 24, 2025. The verdict was announced by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts.
Fischer, age 42, owns PK Motor Cars in Peabody, a business involved in selling and repairing used vehicles as well as car rentals. In 2016, authorities began investigating Phillip Morose, who was identified as a major drug trafficker responsible for distributing large quantities of counterfeit fentanyl pills.
According to evidence presented during the trial, Fischer worked with Morose to launder proceeds from his drug activities through her dealership. In August 2016, she appointed Morose as CEO of PK Motor Cars. Following this change in leadership, nearly $1 million in cash was deposited into the business accounts linked to Fischer. Later that year, cashier’s checks drawn from these accounts were used to purchase a house in Lynnfield for Morose. The property was registered under Fischer’s business name to hide its true ownership and the source of funds used for its acquisition. Additionally, luxury vehicles owned by PK Motor Cars were made available to Morose for use in promoting his drug operation.
Morose received a 30-year prison sentence in Florida in 2019 for charges related to drug trafficking and money laundering. He later received an additional concurrent sentence of 80 months for money laundering offenses prosecuted in Massachusetts.
The charge against Fischer carries a potential penalty of up to 20 years’ imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and fines reaching $500,000 or twice the value of laundered funds. Sentencing is scheduled before U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley on March 5, 2026.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley stated: “United States Attorney Leah B. Foley; Jarod A. Forget, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration in New England; Thomas Demeo, Special Agent in Charge of Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston; and Thomas Greco, Special Agent in Charge of the Boston Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives made the announcement.” She also acknowledged assistance from several law enforcement agencies across Massachusetts and federal task forces.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Alathea E. Porter and K. Nathaniel Yeager are leading prosecution efforts from the Narcotics & Money Laundering Unit.
This case falls under the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159 aimed at combating criminal cartels and transnational crime within U.S borders through coordinated interagency action involving multiple federal and local agencies.
