5th Cir. Pattern Jury Instr. (Criminal) 2.76C

18 U.S.C. § 1956(h)

Title 18, United States Code, Section 1956(h), makes it a crime for anyone to conspire to

commit money laundering.

A “conspiracy” is an agreement between two or more persons to join together to

accomplish some unlawful purpose.

For you to find the defendant guilty of this crime, you must be convinced that the

government has proved each of the following beyond a reasonable doubt:

First: That the defendant and at least one other person made an agreement to commit the

crime of ____________________ (specify elements of the offense charged in the indictment);

Second: That the defendant knew the unlawful purpose of the agreement; and

Third: That the defendant joined in the agreement willfully, that is, with the intent to further

the unlawful purpose.

One may become a member of a conspiracy without knowing all the details of the unlawful

scheme or the identities of all the other alleged conspirators. If a defendant understands the

unlawful nature of a plan or scheme and knowingly and intentionally joins in that plan or scheme

on one occasion, that is sufficient to c onvict him [her] for conspiracy even though the defendant

had not participated before and even though the defendant played only a minor part.

The government need not prove an overt act in furtherance of the conspiracy.

The government need not prove that the alleged conspirators entered into any formal

agreement nor that they directly stated between themselves all the details of the scheme. Similarly,

the government need not prove that all of the details of the scheme alleged in the indictment were

actually agreed upon or carried out. Nor must it prove that all of the persons alleged to have been

members of the conspiracy were such, or that the alleged conspirators actually succeeded in

accomplishing their unlawful objectives.

Mere presence at the scene of an event, even with knowledge that a crime is being

committed, or the mere fact that certain persons may have associated with each other and may

have assembled together and discussed common aims and interests, does not necessarily establish

proof of the existence of a conspiracy. Also, a person who has no knowledge of a conspiracy, but

who happens to act in a way which advances some purpose of a conspiracy, does not thereby

become a conspirator.

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