25792: Hermantin(news) Federal jury convicts man in Haiti cocaine-smuggling case (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Sun Sentinel


Federal jury convicts man in Haiti cocaine-smuggling case



By Akilah Johnson
Staff Writer

July 22, 2005

A federal jury convicted a man Thursday of conspiring to smuggle millions of 
dollars worth of Colombian cocaine into the United States through Haiti, the 
U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Serge Edouard, 43, also was found guilty of money laundering for paying 
corrupt, high-ranking officials to protect his business, federal authorities 
said. He faces life in prison when sentenced Sept. 29.

> From 1998 to 2004, Edouard headed the large-scale operation responsible for 
sneaking thousands of pounds of cocaine into Miami and New York, prosecutors 
said. Starting in 2000, he began working with American Airlines security 
director Stephanie Ambroise in Port-au-Prince to ship over two to three loads a 
month, court documents said.

Suitcases packed with cocaine were delivered to Ambroise's husband the night 
before a flight departed, the documents said. She attached numbered shipping 
tags to the bags, gave the tag numbers to an airport worker who then loaded the 
bags onto the flights, according to court documents.

The drugs would be sold in the United States and the money sent back to Haiti, 
where Edouard laundered it, federal authorities said.

According to court documents, the former Port-au-Prince airport commander and 
former Haitian anti-drug chief were part of the organization. Both were 
indicted on cocaine-conspiracy charges, as was Ambroise.

Also indicted was the former Haitian National Police Cmdr. Rudy Therassan and 
former palace police chief Oriel Jean. Jean testified that Edouard paid $40,000 
for a security badge to help him travel freely without being searched by 
police.

Jean, 40, recently pleaded guilty to a money-laundering conspiracy charge and 
testified against Edouard before being sentenced.

Therassan was sentenced to almost 15 years in prison last week after pleading 
guilty in April to drug and money laundering charges, though his sentence was 
reduced by five years for cooperating with prosecutors.

Edouard was convicted of nine counts of money laundering, conspiring to commit 
money laundering and conspiring to import more than 5 kilos of cocaine. Besides 
life in prison, Edouard faces the forfeiture of up to $15 million in assets 
when sentenced. More than $5 million has already been seized.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Akilah Johnson can be reached at akjohnson@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4631.


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