The flight attendants — Charlie Hernandez, 42; Sarah Valerio Pujols, 24; Emmanuel Torres, 34; and Jarol Fabio, 35 — had been all arrested on Tuesday on numerous costs, together with the operation of an unlicensed cash transmission enterprise.
In keeping with a pair of federal indictments unsealed by the US Lawyer’s Workplace within the Southern District of New York, the entire defendants held “Recognized Crewmember” standing with the Transportation Safety Administration.
Utilizing this standing, they may entry a particular safety lane at John F. Kennedy Worldwide Airport with out present process typical passenger screening procedures.
“Flight attendants are perfect for smuggling bulk money” for that reason, a Homeland Safety Investigations particular agent wrote within the indictments.
By “abusing their privileges as airline workers,” the flight attendants managed to move about $8 million in “bulk money” from the US to the Dominican Republic over a number of years, US Lawyer Damian Williams stated in a assertion.
The indictments stated the smuggling occurred from at the very least 2014 till as late as 2023.
Hernandez was accused of smuggling at the very least $2.5 million in narcotics proceeds from the US to the Dominican Republic, whereas Pujols, Torres, and Fabio had been every accused of getting smuggled narcotics proceeds, or money they understood to be narcotics proceeds, price at the very least $1.5 million.
In one of many indictment paperwork, an HSI particular agent outlined sting operations during which a cooperating witness offered $60,000 in authorities funds to Fabio in 2023 and Torres in 2022.
The pair believed the cash was the proceeds of narcotics trafficking and wanted to be transported, based on the indictment.
In separate incidents, a 12 months aside, Torres and Fabio met one other informant within the Dominican Republic to ship the money, which was then returned to legislation enforcement, prosecutors stated.
The interactions had been recorded.
In December 2019, an informant gave Hernandez $121,215 in money, of which $61,215 was handed over to Pujols.
Pujols was stopped by Customs and Border Safety brokers at JFK.
The particular agent stated within the indictment that Pujols claimed to have about $1,000 on her, however brokers discovered about $60,000 in three bundles hid in her purse. She was fired from her job, based on the indictment.
Delta Airways confirmed to NBC Information that two defendants labored for them.
In a press release offered to Enterprise Insider, a Delta spokesperson stated: “Delta has cooperated absolutely with legislation enforcement on this investigation and can proceed to take action.”
It is unclear which airways the opposite two defendants labored for.
Authorized representatives for Fabio and Torres didn’t instantly reply to BI’s request for remark. The opposite defendants’ attorneys weren’t listed on courtroom paperwork.
Within the assertion asserting the unsealing of the indictments, HSI Particular Agent in Cost Ivan J. Arvelo stated the defendants “took benefit of airport safety checkpoints through the use of their trusted positions as flight attendants.”
He stated the investigation “uncovered crucial vulnerabilities within the airline safety trade” and has “illuminated strategies that narcotics traffickers are using.”
