Guam jury indicts 2 Pinoys in $900K cash smuggling
MANILA, Philippines - Guam’s federal grand jury indicted on Wednesday two Filipinos arrested on Feb 28 for attempting to take $900,000 (roughly P36.3 million) in cash out of the US territory on a flight to Manila.
Ernesto Paglicawan Verdera and Mark Anthony Bartolome are facing charges of bulk cash smuggling, also known as dollar salting, out of the United States and forfeiture after trying to transport the US currency concealed in five of seven checked-in baggage and carefully wrapped in black carbon papers to avoid detection by scanning.
Marianas Variety reported Wednesday night that Verdera and Bartolome, who remained in detention, are scheduled to answer the indictment on Friday.
The smuggling case carries a penalty of more than one year imprisonment. The forfeiture case means seizure of the $900,000 in favor of the United States.
Verdera and Bartolome were about to board a 5 a.m. Philippine Airlines (PR 111) flight to Manila when accosted with bulks of cash in dollar denomination, according to a report prepared by Avery Cepeda, special agent of Guam's Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The Filipinos were immediately charged with bulk cash smuggling (also known as dollar salting) and forfeiture before Judge Frances M. Tydingco-Gatewood of the district court of Guam.
A three-page charge sheet said the two Filipinos deliberately tried to evade a currency reporting requirement under Title 1, United States Code, Section 5316, and conceal more than $10,000 in currency or other monetary instruments in their luggage, and attempted to transport it within the US to a place outside the territory.
"On February 28, 2008, at approximately 5 a.m., Ernesto Paglicawan and Mark Anthony Bartolome checked into the Guam International Airport to depart Guam on Philippine Airlines flight PR 111. The itineraries of both men indicated they were traveling together.
Verdera checked in seven pieces of baggage, which were submitted to screening by the Transportation and Security Administration (TSA). At the time of check-in, Verdera did not declare that he had any cash in his baggage," the case record in court said.
The offense is punishable by imprisonment of at least one year, plus forfeiture of the amount seized.
The bundles of money were found in five of seven checked in luggage of Verdera when passed through the airport scanning machine. The bills were concealed in black cartons, and wrapped in carbon papers to avoid detection by K-9 sniffing dogs.
The Filipinos admitted during interrogation that it was not the first time they attempted to carry bulk of cash out of Guam.
TSA personnel first detected bulk cash in a box that Verdera checked in. Upon discovery, his six other checked in baggage were pulled out from the cargo staging area, and two pieces were subsequently x-rayed.
The x-rays revealed suspected bundles of cash hidden in the suitcases, prompting ICE task force officer Barbara Tayama to open and inspect all other pieces of baggage.
"TFA Tayama found a large quantity of cash hidden in five of the seven checked-in pieces of baggage. In each suitcase, the cash had been bundled, wrapped, and concealed in black poster board paper lined with carbon paper. In one of the bags, the money had been sewn into the cloth liner. In addition, scented dryer sheets had been wrapped with the cash," the ICE report on the case further said.
"In my training and experience, this is done by bulk cash smugglers for the purpose of preventing detection by K-9 units," Cepeda stressed in the report.
Verdera had all baggage claim tickets for the seven pieces of baggage.
Bartolome told ICE task force officer Peter Ungacta on questioning that he and Verdera were on Guam for vacation, and stayed together at the Days Inn.
He admitted to helping Verdera in packing bulk cash into the pieces of luggage they were carrying to the Philippines. He said he bought a box of carbon paper used to wrap the cash.
Bartolome also confessed that he and Verdera had been on Guam and had carried bulk cash out of the territory "without reporting it to Customs and Border Protection."
US federal law requires departing passengers to declare possession of cash in excess of $10,000 in US currency to the Customs and Border Protection. Guam is a US territory in the Pacific. - GMANews.TV
Ernesto Paglicawan Verdera and Mark Anthony Bartolome are facing charges of bulk cash smuggling, also known as dollar salting, out of the United States and forfeiture after trying to transport the US currency concealed in five of seven checked-in baggage and carefully wrapped in black carbon papers to avoid detection by scanning.
Marianas Variety reported Wednesday night that Verdera and Bartolome, who remained in detention, are scheduled to answer the indictment on Friday.
The smuggling case carries a penalty of more than one year imprisonment. The forfeiture case means seizure of the $900,000 in favor of the United States.
Verdera and Bartolome were about to board a 5 a.m. Philippine Airlines (PR 111) flight to Manila when accosted with bulks of cash in dollar denomination, according to a report prepared by Avery Cepeda, special agent of Guam's Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The Filipinos were immediately charged with bulk cash smuggling (also known as dollar salting) and forfeiture before Judge Frances M. Tydingco-Gatewood of the district court of Guam.
A three-page charge sheet said the two Filipinos deliberately tried to evade a currency reporting requirement under Title 1, United States Code, Section 5316, and conceal more than $10,000 in currency or other monetary instruments in their luggage, and attempted to transport it within the US to a place outside the territory.
"On February 28, 2008, at approximately 5 a.m., Ernesto Paglicawan and Mark Anthony Bartolome checked into the Guam International Airport to depart Guam on Philippine Airlines flight PR 111. The itineraries of both men indicated they were traveling together.
Verdera checked in seven pieces of baggage, which were submitted to screening by the Transportation and Security Administration (TSA). At the time of check-in, Verdera did not declare that he had any cash in his baggage," the case record in court said.
The offense is punishable by imprisonment of at least one year, plus forfeiture of the amount seized.
The bundles of money were found in five of seven checked in luggage of Verdera when passed through the airport scanning machine. The bills were concealed in black cartons, and wrapped in carbon papers to avoid detection by K-9 sniffing dogs.
The Filipinos admitted during interrogation that it was not the first time they attempted to carry bulk of cash out of Guam.
TSA personnel first detected bulk cash in a box that Verdera checked in. Upon discovery, his six other checked in baggage were pulled out from the cargo staging area, and two pieces were subsequently x-rayed.
The x-rays revealed suspected bundles of cash hidden in the suitcases, prompting ICE task force officer Barbara Tayama to open and inspect all other pieces of baggage.
"TFA Tayama found a large quantity of cash hidden in five of the seven checked-in pieces of baggage. In each suitcase, the cash had been bundled, wrapped, and concealed in black poster board paper lined with carbon paper. In one of the bags, the money had been sewn into the cloth liner. In addition, scented dryer sheets had been wrapped with the cash," the ICE report on the case further said.
"In my training and experience, this is done by bulk cash smugglers for the purpose of preventing detection by K-9 units," Cepeda stressed in the report.
Verdera had all baggage claim tickets for the seven pieces of baggage.
Bartolome told ICE task force officer Peter Ungacta on questioning that he and Verdera were on Guam for vacation, and stayed together at the Days Inn.
He admitted to helping Verdera in packing bulk cash into the pieces of luggage they were carrying to the Philippines. He said he bought a box of carbon paper used to wrap the cash.
Bartolome also confessed that he and Verdera had been on Guam and had carried bulk cash out of the territory "without reporting it to Customs and Border Protection."
US federal law requires departing passengers to declare possession of cash in excess of $10,000 in US currency to the Customs and Border Protection. Guam is a US territory in the Pacific. - GMANews.TV
Comments