Government officials in Honduras say a bank caught up in a United States money laundering investigation will remain closed until Wednesday and will eventually be liquidated.
The Banco Continental is Honduras' eighth largest. Its owner, Jaime Rosenthal, was charged along with a son, a nephew and company lawyer with money laundering in a federal court in New York. The nephew, Yankel Rosenthal, was arrested last week in Miami.
U.S. prosecutors allege the Rosenthals used their network of businesses, including the bank, to launder money for Central American drug traffickers. The family denied the allegations.
Ethel Deras, president of the National Banking and Insurance Commission, said Monday the government would oversee the return of all of the bank's financial obligations.
Clients and employees have lined up for days to make withdrawals.
