Trucking Company Pleads Guilty to Smuggling $267 Million in Chinese Apparel into U.S.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has issued a press release announcing that Armando Salcedo, owner of Friends Global Logistics trucking company, pleaded guilty to conspiring to make false declarations and to smuggle, in a massive apparel smuggling plot that ICE investigators describe as the largest commercial fraud scheme ever uncovered on the West Coast.
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Salcedo admitted that he used the Customs in-bond transportation system to illegally bring Chinese-made wearing apparel into the U.S. without paying the required duty, in violation of bilateral trade agreements and import quotas.
Clothing Shipped from China to U.S., Illegally Delivered to Buyers in U.S.
According to the indictment, beginning on an unknown date and ending in 2002, Salcedo and others sent ocean and air shipments of clothing from China to the U.S. and provided documents to Customs brokers that falsely stated the garments were being sold to companies in Mexico. In fact, using one or more of his companies, Salcedo received the shipments of apparel in the U.S. and oversaw their delivery to buyers throughout the U.S. Among the buyers were several major U.S.-based clothing distributors, including Kenko Warehouse and Hampshire Designers.
Investigation Revealed Over 7,000 Containers of Illegally Imported Apparel, Etc.
ICE's investigation revealed that the smuggling scheme resulted in more than 7,000 shipping containers of apparel being illegally imported into the U.S. The indictment charged Salcedo with being personally involved in the smuggling of approximately 3,200 containers. Customs documents associated with those containers claimed that the value of goods in those containers was approximately $267 million, but the government believes that the true value of goods was much higher.
During the investigation, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers intercepted illegally imported clothing worth approximately $67 million. That apparel, as well as approximately $25 million in cash, has been seized by ICE in conjunction with the investigation.
ICE press release (dated 03/03/08) available at http://www.ice.gov/pi/news/newsreleases/articles/080303losangeles.htm