Opinion ID: 707621
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Counts VII and VIII--Basler DC-3 Conversions

Text: 37 In 1988, Warren Basler was developing a DC-3 turbo prop conversion which replaced the outdated radial piston engines on those World War II vintage aircraft with lighter stronger turbine units. The conversion also included updated electronics, aerodynamic changes and a 40 inch stretch in the fuselage. The resulting aircraft retained the rugged cargo carrying capacity of the original DC-3, which accounted for the original plane's 50 plus years of use, and increased speed and range. These factors along with its ability to land on short unimproved airfields, made the Basler turbo conversion an enticing item for drug traffickers. 38 Before Basler had even received FAA approval for his conversion much less sold any aircraft, Burton Golb approached him seeking to purchase a total of six converted planes for his client Air Colombia. Golb and Basler reached a written agreement in September 1988. Between October 1988 and June 1989, $4,262,828 passed from Air Colombia through Air North to Basler. These funds were traced to 25 checks drawn on third-party accounts in Mexican banks and wire transfers from accounts fed through the two money laundering operations. 39 When Air Colombia fell behind on its payments Basler asked for more information on the company and its principals. Air Colombia declined to supply this information. In June 1989, after his brother-in-law Franco lost his position with Air Caribe, Golb lost all of his Air Colombia business including the Basler account. Air Colombia then turned to Ricardo Londono to finish the deal with Basler. 40 Londono in turn went to Caribbean Air and Marine Services (CAMS) to replace Air North as intermediary to Basler and as exporter of the aircraft to Colombia. Unbeknownst to Londono, however, CAMS was in fact a fictitious business operated by the FBI as part of an undercover sting operation aimed at Londono's money laundering operations. 41 Golb's challenge to the sufficiency of the evidence supporting the jury's verdict on his brokering of the Basler conversions is unavailing. As with the other planes, the government established the drug proceeds element by tracing the funds to laundered accounts. Evidence that Air Colombia turned to Ricardo Londono after Golb was taken off the deal further supports the inference that the planes were purchased by drug traffickers for their trade. 42 Because Air Colombia and Air Caribe were controlled by the same individuals, Golb's threats against Morales and other AEI employees during the earlier Commander XBDSA transaction were equally probative of his knowledge of the source of the funds in DC-3 transactions and thus support the second prong of the statute. The jury also could have considered Golb's role in the earlier Piper Navajo purchase with Morales and Franco as evidence of his general familiarity with laundering money through aircraft deals. The evidence supporting Golb's intent to conceal the source of funds and promote drug trafficking was also essentially the same as that in Counts III and VI, including the unusual form of the funds Golb received from Air Colombia, his insistence that Basler undervalue the airplane for exportation and the plane's special suitability for drug trafficking.