Opinion ID: 561304
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Izquierdo's, Amejeiras', Luis Gonzalez' and Chao's

Text: 117 Participation in a Single Overall Conspiracy 118 Having determined that there was substantial evidence to establish the existence of a single overall conspiracy as alleged in the indictment, we now proceed to determine whether the record contains substantial evidence to support the jury's verdicts that Izquierdo, Amejeiras, Luis Gonzalez and Vicente Chao knowingly participated in the conspiracy. In United States v. Briscoe, 896 F.2d 1476, 1505 (7th Cir.1990), we observed: 119 The government may establish a defendant's knowing participation in a single conspiracy by offering evidence that: 120 '[t]he parties to the agreement were aware that others were participating in the scheme. The co-conspirators must have knowingly embraced a common criminal objective. ... However, there is no requirement that the participants in the plan personally know the individuals involved ... [a]s long as the conspiracy continues in its goals to achieve a common objective. ' 121 United States v. Boucher, 796 F.2d 972, 975 (7th Cir.1986) (citations omitted). In other words, the government may establish that a defendant knowingly became a member of a single narcotics conspiracy ' if each [defendant retailer] knew or had reason to know, that other retailers were involved with the ... organization in a broad project for smuggling, distribution and retail sale of narcotics, and had reason to believe that their own benefits derived from the operation were probably dependent upon the success of the entire venture ... ' United States v. Cerro, 775 F.2d 908, 911 (7th Cir.1985) (emphasis in Cerro and citation omitted). 122 In addressing the question of whether substantial evidence supports a conclusion of knowing participation in the single overall conspiracy we have recognized that, as an appellate court: Our job is not to weigh the evidence or assess the credibility of the witnesses. Our job is merely to determine if the evidence introduced is sufficient to support the jury's finding of knowing participation, a finding that may arise from circumstantial evidence and the reasonable inferences derivable therefrom. Paiz, 905 F.2d at 1021 (citations omitted).1. Rafael Izaquierdo's Participation in the Conspiracy 123 Rafael Izquierdo asserts that the evidence was insufficient to demonstrate his participation in a single overall conspiracy with the other defendants. He further contends that because the government failed to establish by a preponderance of the evidence that Izquierdo was a member of a conspiracy including Vicente Chao, testimony of Cesar Tobon dealing with the hearsay statement that someone was keeping the owner of the Celi-Mar warehouse away from the business on the day of the cocaine delivery should not have been admitted into evidence. 124 Izquierdo traveled to Chicago on July 16, 1987, immediately prior to the cocaine delivery, with the conspiracy's cocaine supplier, Roberto Ramirez. Ramirez and Izquierdo traveled on airline tickets Izquierdo had purchased for them with Izquierdo's charge card. Telephone records documented frequent telephone contacts during the time period of the conspiracy between Izquierdo and Vicente Chao, the conspirator who received the cocaine delivery. Shortly before Izquierdo's arrival in Chicago, toll records reflected calls between Izquierdo's home and Celi-Mar and from Izquierdo's residence to Chao. 16 The record of frequent telephone contacts, including the telephone calls between Izquierdo's home and Celi-Mar on the day prior to the arrival of the June 1987 cocaine shipment in Miami is just another part of the evidence establishing a relationship between Izquierdo and Chao. After arriving in Chicago, Izquierdo kept the Celi-Mar warehouse's owner, Matteo Hernandez, away from the warehouse premises on the day of the cocaine delivery by taking him on a series of calls ostensibly designed to generate fish sales. The importance of Izquierdo's conduct to the conspiracy and the knowledge he had of the drug ring's purposes is confirmed in the apprehension enunciated in Vicente Chao's statement to Pena and Tobon concerning the possibility of Matteo Hernandez, the owner of the Celi-Mar warehouse, returning before the drug shipment left the Celi-Mar warehouse. When Izquierdo took Hernandez away from the Celi-Mar warehouse, he allowed the conspirators to transfer the cocaine shipment without Hernandez' knowledge. The jury had evidence of the role Izquierdo played in the prevention of Hernandez' returning to the Celi-Mar warehouse, which helped to insure the success of the July 1987 cocaine delivery. The jury also had before it evidence of Izquierdo's travel to Chicago in the company of Roberto Gonzalez, an individual involved in arranging the purchase of the cocaine that the conspirators shipped to Miami and of Izquierdo's frequent contact with conspirator Vicente Chao during the time of the conspiracy's cocaine shipments in the summer of 1987. Based upon these facts, the jury could conclude beyond a reasonable doubt that Izquierdo was a knowing participant in a single overall cocaine importation and distribution conspiracy that included Vicente Chao. 125 Because we are of the opinion that the evidence set forth above established beyond a reasonable doubt Izquierdo's knowing participation in the conspiracy, it also follows that there was certainly more than a preponderance of the evidence upon which the trial judge could conclude that Izquierdo was a member of the conspiracy for the purpose of determining the admission of the co-conspirator hearsay. Thus, the trial judge properly received in evidence Chao's statement, as co-conspirator hearsay, that someone was keeping Celi-Mar's owner away from the Celi-Mar warehouse on the day of the July 1987 cocaine delivery. 126 2. Angel M. Amejeiras' Participation in the Conspiracy 127 Angel M. Amejeiras alleges that the evidence demonstrated that he was merely an errand boy for the other conspirators and thus not a knowing participant in the conspiracy. We disagree. 128 Amejeiras was one of the persons present at the conspirators' February 1987 planning meeting. As to the July 1987 drug shipment, Amejeiras was one of the individuals who met with Daniel Petroski in the successful attempt to hire him to deliver cocaine from Miami to New York and on to Chicago. Julio Ortiz testified that Amejeiras demonstrated familiarity with the circumstances of the July 1987 cocaine shipment in a conversation with Ortiz concerning the diversion of the cocaine. In addition, telephone records established that during the time Tellechea, a consistent participant in the conspiracy, was trailing the cocaine shipment from Miami to New York and then on to Chicago a number of calls were made from the hotel rooms where Tellechea was staying to Amejeiras' residence and from Amejeiras' home to Tellechea's hotels. Furthermore, after Amejeiras received a telephone call from Julio Ortiz informing him that the burglar alarm had been tripped at the offices of International Palm Products, Amejeiras drove to International Palm Products where he was met by federal agents conducting a search of the premises. The above evidence provided the jury with a sufficient basis to conclude that Amejeiras was a knowledgeable participant in the drug conspiracy enterprise. 129 3. Luis Gonzalez' Participation in the Conspiracy 130 Luis Gonzalez asserts that the evidence was insufficient to demonstrate that he knowingly participated in the cocaine importation and distribution conspiracy. We detailed the evidence supporting Gonzalez' knowledgeable participation in the conspiracy in our discussion of the conscious avoidance instruction in Section X, supra. 131 Gonzalez was identified as the individual who personally inspected the cocaine shipment in New York and who advised Petroski, the truck driver, that the shipment should have been delivered to Chicago rather than New York. 132 After Gonzalez traveled with a co-conspirator to follow the cocaine from Miami to New York to Chicago, he attempted to confuse his pursuers by flying from Chicago to Detroit and later on to Miami rather than proceeding on a direct flight from Chicago to Miami. 133 Gonzalez exercised control over the conspiracy's reception center designated for the receiving of cocaine from Honduras. It is beyond comprehension and ridiculous to expect one to believe that conspirators, concerned with the secrecy of a clandestine business where killing is a frequent occurrence to prevent information from reaching authorities and/or to enforce debts, would entrust an individual with a major role in the conspiracy if he lacked knowledge of the conspiracy. Thus, a jury could reasonably find that although Gonzalez was managing the conspiracy's business for only two weeks, his position in the management and control of the conspiracy's enterprise for receiving cocaine through Honduras exposed him to the intricate business of cocaine importation and distribution. 134 Based upon all the evidence of Gonzalez' participation in the conspiracy before and after his advancement to the managerial position recounted in this section, as well as in Section X, supra, a reasonable jury could very easily reach the conclusion that Luis Gonzalez was a knowing participant in the conspiracy. This is especially true because with respect to the question of knowing participation in a conspiracy, it is well settled that '[i]f the facts indicate the defendant must have known something ... then a jury may be able to find beyond a reasonable doubt that [he] did know it, especially since the requirement of knowledge is satisfied by proof that the defendant willfully shut [his] eyes for fear of what [he] might see if [he] opened them, United States v. Josefik, 753 F.2d 585, 589 (7th Cir.1985).'  United States v. Diaz, 876 F.2d 1344, 1354 (7th Cir.1989) (quoting United States v. Cerro, 775 F.2d 908, 911 (7th Cir.1985)). Thus, we conclude that the jury's verdict that Luis Gonzalez knowingly participated in the drug importation and distribution conspiracy was proper. 135 4. Vicente Chao's Participation in the Conspiracy and Chao's 136 Possession of Cocaine with Intent to Distribute 137 Vicente Chao asserts that the evidence was insufficient to demonstrate either that he knowingly participated in the single overall drug importation and distribution conspiracy or that he knowingly possessed cocaine with intent to distribute the same on July 29, 1987, when he accepted delivery of the cocaine shipment at the Celi-Mar warehouse and transferred the cocaine to Pena and Tobon for further distribution. 138 The evidence reveals that when Petroski arrived with the cocaine shipment on July 29 at the Celi-Mar warehouse, Chao participated in the unloading of the plantains and cocaine. After Tobon and Pena arrived at the warehouse, Chao explained the proper procedure for locating the boxes containing the cocaine. He suggested that they stick their fingers through the boxes' air holes, and that upon touching plastic wrapping without plantain fruit, they would ascertain that the box contained cocaine. He further informed Pena and Tobon that Ulises Ortega was available to load their truck. While cocaine was being loaded in Tobon and Pena's truck, Chao, Pena and Tobon discovered that one of the boxes containing cocaine rather than plantains was missing. While Pena, Tobon and Chao searched for the cocaine, Chao informed them that the owner was being kept away from the premises and that they must complete the loading of the cocaine and remove it from the premises before his return. In addition, during the search of the Celi-Mar warehouse following Chao's arrest a business card was found with Izquierdo's hotel room number that Quintero had instructed Pena to give to Chao as the identifying signal that Pena was the individual to receive the cocaine shipment. 139 Thus the events described above of July 29, 1987, demonstrate both that Chao had knowledge of and participated in the importation and distribution of the cocaine and knowingly possessed a cocaine shipment with intent to distribute the same. Chao's statement to Pena and Tobon concerning how they could locate the cocaine by inserting their fingers through the air holes of the boxes to find plastic wrappings without plantain fruit together with his declaration that someone was keeping the owner away, established that he had knowledge of the shipment and its contents. Beyond doubt, after reviewing this evidence, a reasonable fact finder could very well determine not only that Chao knowingly possessed cocaine with an intent to distribute the same in July of 1987 but was also guilty of conspiring to possess this large quantity of cocaine with intent to distribute. 140