2 Pinoys, 6 others face $80-M US fraud raps

The US Justice Department has charged eight individuals in connection with an $80-million conspiracy to commit fraud against the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Two of those charged are Manila-based Filipinos. In a statement dated Oct. 11 and datelined Washington, the US Justice Department said the scheme involved fraudulent loan transactions between companies located in the Philippines and United States lending banks, in which the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) acted as guarantor or insurer. "As part of the scheme, a loan broker in the Philippines assisted borrowers in executing loan agreements with the lending banks and in obtaining loan guarantees or insurance policies from the Ex-Im Bank as part of the loan agreements. The loan broker then recruited United States exporters for the purpose of purchasing US goods and shipping those goods to the Philippine borrowers, and then instructed the exporters to prepare false shipping documents and submit those false documents to the lending banks to make it appear that they had purchased and shipped goods," the Department explained. "In reality, the exporters did not purchase the goods called for in the loan agreements, and instead misappropriated a majority of the loan proceeds," it added. Five of the eight defendants have pleaded guilty to the charges, the statement said. In a separate statement by Ex-Im Bank, it was learned that four of those who pleaded guilty are exporters, and one is a freight-forwarder. All are US citizens. These defendants have all agreed to serve time in prison, with maximum sentences of up to 40 years. "We will not tolerate fraudulent use of Ex-Im Bank financing. With the help of the Justice Department, we will continue to pursue anyone attempting to rip off the taxpayer," said Ex-Im Bank chairman and president James H. Lambright. On Oct. 11 plea agreements of defendants Daniel Curran, 52, of Boynton Beach, Fla.; Edward Chua, 55, of Montebello, Calif.; and David Villongco, 51, of San Mateo, Calif. were unsealed. Curran and Chua pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States and mail fraud. Villongco pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government with respect to claims and mail fraud. Earlier, Marilyn G. Ong, 51, and her nephew Ildefonso Ong Jr., 43, both from Manila, Philippines, were charged in a 19-count indictment returned by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia on October 4, 2007. "The Ongs were charged with one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and to commit offenses against the United States; four counts of submitting false statements to the Ex-Im Bank; four counts of mail fraud; and nine counts of money laundering. The indictment also charged Marilyn Ong with obstructing the Ex-Im Bank’s investigation of the fraudulent scheme," it said. The Ongs face a maximum sentence of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, five years in prison on each of the false statement charges, 30 years in prison on each of the mail fraud charges, and 10 years in prison on each of the money laundering charges. Marilyn Ong faces an additional maximum sentence of five years in prison on the obstruction charge, for a total potential maximum sentence of 240 years in prison. According to the statement, the indictment also seeks forfeiture from the Ongs of the misappropriated loan proceeds. Christina Song, 49, of Whittier, Calif., was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States and mail fraud. According to the charges, Song, through her company V&C Trading/Song Co., acted as a purported exporter in approximately $17 million worth of fraudulent loan transactions, falsified documents sent to United States banks and to the Ex-Im Bank, and misappropriated approximately $15 million in loan proceeds that were guaranteed by the Ex-Im Bank. Song faces a maximum sentence of 35 years in prison. Jaime Galvez, 51, of Redondo Beach, Calif., pleaded guilty on Oct. 5, 2007, in US District Court for the District of Columbia before Judge Roberts, to a two-count criminal information charging him with destruction or concealment of records in a Federal investigation and perjury. According to the charges, Galvez was the owner and president of J.G. International Freight Corp. (“JG International"), a freight forwarding company in the business of packaging and shipping goods overseas. Galvez caused the concealment and destruction of approximately 35 commercial invoices that were responsive to a grand jury subpoena submitted to J.G. International. The information also charged Galvez with committing perjury before a grand jury in the District of Columbia. He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years in prison. Robert Delgado, 46, of Fremont, Calif., pleaded guilty on Nov. 17, 2006, in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to conspiracy to defraud the government with respect to claims and mail fraud. According to the charges, Delgado, through his company Global Resources Group, acted as a purported exporter in two fraudulent loan transactions, falsified documents sent to United States banks and to the Ex-Im Bank, and misappropriated approximately $2.1 million in loan proceeds that were guaranteed by the Ex-Im Bank. Delgado has been sentenced to 24 months in prison and ordered to pay more than $1.9 million in restitution on the conspiracy and mail fraud charges. - GMANews.TV