Lavel Schwartz is a Brooklyn-based rabbi and brother of Rabbi Mordchai Fish, who became a central figure in the federal corruption and money laundering investigation known as Operation Bid Rig. He conspired with Fish in laundering funds through gemachs, including Beth Pinchas and Boyoner Gemilas Chesed, operating these religious charitable organizations as illegal banks to launder funds. Schwartz served as a key operational facilitator in a subterranean financial network that laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars in illicit proceeds. The scheme involved approximately 10 separate transactions between 2008 and 2009 with a cooperating witness, Solomon Dwek, who posed as a developer seeking to clean funds from illegal activities, including trafficking counterfeit goods. Schwartz assisted in counting large sums of cash, actively encouraged Dwek to increase transaction volumes—believing his brother retained a significant brokerage fee—and helped convert checks into cash through the network of gemachs. In May 2012, he pleaded guilty to a money laundering conspiracy charge in federal court. During his December 2012 sentencing, judges highlighted the betrayal of his religious position, resulting in a sentence of one year and one day in federal prison, three years of supervised release, and forfeiture of significant assets derived from the scheme. He was convicted in the Bid Rig laundering scheme.