Sweden seeks 2 Britons for smuggling garlic

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
STOCKHOLM (AP) — Swedish prosecutors have issued international arrest warrants for two Britons suspected of masterminding a smuggling ring involving Chinese garlic.

The men first shipped the garlic to Norway by boat, where it entered the country duty-free since it was considered to be in transit, prosecutor Thomas Ahlstrand said Wednesday. They then drove large shipments of garlic across the Norwegian-Swedish border, avoiding customs checks and thus Swedish import duties.

Ahlstrand said the men avoided paying some €10 million ($13.1 million) in Swedish taxes with the scheme, which took place in 2009 and 2010. A lengthy police investigation led to the identification of the two Britons.

Ahlstrand initially said they smuggled in 1.2 tons of garlic, but later said the exact amount was unclear.

It was not the first time smugglers have shown a preference for garlic from China, which accounts for nearly 80 percent of world output and is often significantly cheaper than local varieties.

In 2010, Polish authorities seized six containers with 144 tons of Chinese garlic that had been smuggled into the country via the Netherlands.

It was not immediately clear whether the Polish smuggling was linked to the Swedish case.

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Cat used in Brazil prison smuggling try

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AppId is over the quota
SAO PAULO (AP) — Guards thought there was something suspicious about a little white cat slipping through a prison gate in northeastern Brazil. A prison official says that when they caught the animal, they found a cellphone, drills, small saws and other contraband taped to its body.

Alagoas state prisons spokeswoman Cinthya Moreno says that the cat was caught New Year's Eve at the medium-security prison in the city of Arapiraca.

The O Estado de S. Paulo newspaper reported Saturday that all of the prison's 263 inmates are suspects in the smuggling attempt, though it says a prison spokesman said "It will be hard to discover who is responsible since the cat does not speak."

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Man avoids jail time in $10 million caviar smuggling caper

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A man who evaded authorities for 23 years on charges he unlawfully imported more than $10 million worth of caviar into the United States was spared jail time at his sentencing on Monday.

Instead, a judge in U.S. District Court in Manhattan imposed a punishment of time already served on Isidoro "Mario" Garbarino, 69, who has been in custody since September 10.

An Italian national, Garbarino was also fined $10,000 and will likely be deported to Italy.

Garbarino was indicted in 1987. But while free on bail he fled to Italy in 1989 and remained a fugitive, mainly in South America, until he was captured in September 2012 by U.S. marshals at an airport in Panama.

In November, Garbarino, who owns Aquamar Gourmet Imports Inc., pleaded guilty to falsely classifying imported goods and making false statements and agreed to pay $3 million in restitution.

The former caviar importer was charged with smuggling more than 100,000 pounds of Russian and Iranian caviar into the United States between 1984 and 1987, in part to avoid tariffs. His company supplied the fish roe to gourmet stores such as Zabar's in New York as well as major air and cruise lines, prosecutors said.

At his sentencing before U.S. District Judge Kevin Duffy, Garbarino fought back tears as he apologized.

"I'm sorry," said Garbarino. "There are no words in the vocabulary for me."

(Reporting By Bernard Vaughan; Editing by Martha Graybow and Nick Zieminski)

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Sweden seeks 2 Britons to garlic smuggling

Stockholm (AP)-Swedish prosecutors have issued international arrest warrants for two Britons suspected of masterminding a smuggling ring involving Chinese garlic.

The men shipped before the garlic in Norway by boat, where he entered the country tax free because it was deemed to be in transit, prosecutor Thomas Ahlstrand said Wednesday. They then drove the large shipments of garlic at the Norwegian-Swedish border, avoiding customs controls and thus Swedish import duties.

Ahlstrand said the men avoided paying some £ 10 million ($ 13.1 million) in taxes in Sweden with the scheme, which took place in 2009 and in 2010. A long police investigation led to the identification of two Britons.

Ahlstrand said initially they smuggled in 1.2 tons of garlic, but later said the exact amount was unclear.

It wasn't the first time smugglers have shown a preference for garlic from China, representing about 80% of world production and is often considerably cheaper than local varieties.

In 2010, the Polish authorities seized six containers with 144 tons of Chinese garlic that had been smuggled into the country through the Netherlands.

Was not immediately clear whether Polish smuggling was linked to Sweden.

View the original article here

Man avoids jail time in $10 million caviar smuggling caper

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A man who evaded authorities for 23 years on charges he unlawfully imported more than $10 million worth of caviar into the United States was spared jail time at his sentencing on Monday.

Instead, a judge in U.S. District Court in Manhattan imposed a punishment of time already served on Isidoro "Mario" Garbarino, 69, who has been in custody since September 10.

An Italian national, Garbarino was also fined $10,000 and will likely be deported to Italy.

Garbarino was indicted in 1987. But while free on bail he fled to Italy in 1989 and remained a fugitive, mainly in South America, until he was captured in September 2012 by U.S. marshals at an airport in Panama.

In November, Garbarino, who owns Aquamar Gourmet Imports Inc., pleaded guilty to falsely classifying imported goods and making false statements and agreed to pay $3 million in restitution.

The former caviar importer was charged with smuggling more than 100,000 pounds of Russian and Iranian caviar into the United States between 1984 and 1987, in part to avoid tariffs. His company supplied the fish roe to gourmet stores such as Zabar's in New York as well as major air and cruise lines, prosecutors said.

At his sentencing before U.S. District Judge Kevin Duffy, Garbarino fought back tears as he apologized.

"I'm sorry," said Garbarino. "There are no words in the vocabulary for me."

(Reporting By Bernard Vaughan; Editing by Martha Graybow and Nick Zieminski)

View the original article here