Imputación contra M. Lustgarten

8/18/2019 Imputación contra M. Lustgarten

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA

MIAMI DIVISION

CASE NO.: 15-MJ-2465-MCALILEY

UNI TED STATES OF AMERI CA, ))

Pl ai nt i f f , ) ( Cor r ect ed case no. )v. )

) Apr i l 13, 2015MARTI N LUSTGARTEN ACHERMAN, )

)

Def endant . ) Pages 1 - 29 ________________________________)

DETENTI ON HEARI NGBEFORE THE HONORABLE EDWI N G. TORRES

UNI TED STATES MAGI STRATE J UDGE

APPEARANCES:

For t he Pl ai nt i f f : UNI TED STATES DEPARTMENT OF J USTI CECr i mi nal Di vi si on

950 Pennsyl vani a Avenue, NWWashi ngt on, DC 20530BY: J OSEPH PALAZZO, AUSA



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CONTI NUED APPEARANCES:

For t he Def endant : NATHAN P. DI AMOND, P. A.888 Bi scayne Boul evardSui t e 501,Mi ami , FL 33132BY: NATHAN P. DI AMOND, ESQ.

Transcr i bed By: Bonni e J oy Lewi s, R. P. R.

7001 SW 13 St r eet Pembroke Pi nes, FL 33023 954- 985- 8875

casel awr pt g@gmai l . com



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I N D E X

THE WI TNESS: PAGE:

SPECI AL AGENT PHI LI P LAVOI E

Cr oss Exami nat i on by Mr . Di amond: 9

Redi r ect Exami nat i on by Mr . Pal azzo: - -



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( Ther eupon, t he f ol l owi ng pr oceedi ng was hel d: )

THE COURTROOM DEPUTY: Cal l i ng t he case of t he Uni t ed

St ates versus Mart i n Lust gart en Acher man; Case Number 15- 2465, J udge

McAl i l ey.

THE COURT: Pr epared t o proceed?

MR. DI AMOND: Yes.

THE COURT: How about t he Government ?

MR. PALAZZO: Good mor ni ng, Your Honor .

J oseph Pal azzo f r om t he Cr i mi nal Di vi si on, Depar t ment of

J ust i ce i n Washi ngt on, D. C.

I t ' s ni ce t o meet you.

And t he Government t oday i s movi ng f or detent i on.

THE COURT: Thank you. Good morni ng.

And f or t he Def endant ?

MR. DI AMOND: Good mor ni ng.

May i t pl ease t he Cour t . Nathan Di amond on behal f of Mr .

Lust gart en who st ands besi de me.

THE COURT: Good mor ni ng.

Okay. Do you wi sh t o pr oceed or do you want t o wai ve t hese

hear i ngs f or - - ar e t hese char ges up i n Massachuset t s, i s t hat i t ?

MR. DI AMOND: Yes, but I t hi nk i t i s ver y i mpor t ant t hat we

move f or war d her e because I t hi nk t her e ar e cer t ai n al l egat i ons t hat

ar e put f or t h t hat mer i t hi s bei ng gi ven a suret y. And goi ng up

t here and bei ng abl e to work wi t h me t hr oughout and dur i ng t hi s

per i od of t i me.



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THE COURT: Now, t hi s i s a f i r st supersedi ng. Was he ever

i ni t i al l ed?

MR. DI AMOND: I f ound t hat most unusual . I saw t he same

t hi ng. I t says f i r st super sedi ng.

THE COURT: Di d he ever have an i ni t i al up i n

Massachuset t s?

MR. DI AMOND: No, Your Honor .

THE COURT: Okay.

MR. DI AMOND: As f ar as I coul d t el l af t er l ooki ng at PACER

t her e was no i ni t i al i ndi ctment . I saw f i r st super sedi ng and - -

THE COURT: Di d you wi sh t o cont est r emoval , or det ent i on,

or bot h?

MR. DI AMOND: Det ent i on.

THE COURT: You are wai vi ng r emoval ? Wai vi ng i dent i t y?

MR. DI AMOND: Yes.

THE COURT: Government , r eady t o proceed on t he det ent i on

hear i ng f or Mr . Acher man?

MR. PALAZZO: Yes, Your Honor .

THE COURT: I s i t Acherman or Aker man?

THE DEFENDANT: Lust gar t en Acherman.

THE COURT: Lust gar t en.

Okay. Go ahead.

MR. PALAZZO: Your Honor, I amunf ami l i ar wi t h t he cust oms

down her e.

I am appear i ng wi t h AUSA J ohn Byrne wi t h t he U. S.



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At t or ney' s Of f i ce up her e i n Fl or i da. The Gover nment i s pr epar ed t o

pr of f er evi dence i n suppor t of i t s mot i on. And Speci al Agent Phi l i p

Lavoi e f r om Homel and Secur i t y I nvest i gat i ons i s al so her e - -

THE COURT: Okay.

MR. PALAZZO: - - t o gi ve t est i mony and suppor t .

THE COURT: Okay. I wi l l accept your prof f er .

MR. PALAZZO: Your Honor , t he Gover nment moves f or

det ent i on t oday because no condi t i ons or ser i es of condi t i ons - -

THE COURT: Move t he mi cr ophone a l i t t l e cl oser .

MR. PALAZZO: Sure.

THE COURT: I want t o make sure we pi ck you up.

MR. PALAZZO: How i s t hat , Your Honor?

THE COURT: That ' s bet t er .

MR. PALAZZO: Your Honor , no condi t i ons or ser i es of

condi t i ons wi l l r easonabl y assur e Mr . Lust gar t en' s appear ance i n

Bost on t o f ace these char ges.

There are f our mai n f act or s t hat t he Government woul d l i ke

t he Cour t t o consi der . The f i r st i s t he ser i ousness of t he cr i mes

f or whi ch Mr . Lust gar t en i s char ged. And by my cal cul at i ons, t he

Sent enci ng Gui del i nes, I have hi m at 42 i f he i s convi cted of al l

t hr ee count s, whi ch ar e l aunder i ng, dr ug pr oceeds, obst r uct i on of

j ust i ce and a conspi r acy count .

And accor di ng t o the Sent enci ng Gui del i nes, t he upper end

of t hat woul d be a l i f e sent ence. He i s st at ut or i l y capped out at

20 year s, but t he sever i t y of t hat sent ence i s somet hi ng t hat t he



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Gover nment woul d l i ke t he Cour t t o consi der .

The Government ' s case i s al so very st r ong. Mr .

Lust gar t en' s arr est l ast week was t he cul mi nat i on of sever al year s

of i nvest i gat i on by a j oi nt t ask f or ce i n t he Di st r i ct of

Massachuset t s. That i ncl uded agent s f r omt he DEA, Homel and Secur i t y

and other agenci es.

Wi r et aps, extensi ve wi r et aps wer e conduct ed i n the Uni t ed

St ates and i n Col ombi a and sever al search warr ant s were executed on

Mr . Lust gar t en' s e- mai l s. So t her e i s pl ent y of document ar y

evi dence suppor t i ng t he char ges as wel l .

The second f act or i s Mr . Lust gar t en' s si gni f i cant f i nanci al

r esour ces. Ther e i s evi dence i n t he case t hat i n t he past sever al

year s over hundr ed mi l l i on dol l ar s passed t hr ough account s

cont r ol l ed by Mr . Lust gar t en i n at l east f i ve di f f er ent count r i es i n

t hr ee di f f er ent cont i nent s around t he wor l d.

Your Honor , Mr . Lust gar t en al so has ext ensi ve f orei gn t i es.

He i s i n t he Uni t ed St at es. Al t hough, he owns a home her e, he i s i n

t he Uni t ed St at es on a B- 2 t our i st vi sa. He i s a ci t i zen, as f ar as

we know at l east , of Aust r i a and Venezuel a and he i s a r esi dent of

Panama.

More than t hat , Your Honor -

THE COURT: Does he have any t i es t o Massachuset t s, do you

know?

MR. PALAZZO: I bel i eve a chi l d - -

MR. DI AMOND: He has a daughter t hat goes t o school t here.



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THE COURT: A daughter .

MR. DI AMOND: And he l i ves here i n Mi ami .

THE COURT: Okay.

MR. PALAZZO: Your Honor - -

THE COURT: What i s t he cr ux of t he evi dence t hat are f ound

on t he wi r etaps?

MR. PALAZZO: Essent i al l y, t hat Mr . Lust gar t en

quart er backed an i nt er nat i onal scheme to move U. S. dol l ars ar ound on

behal f of - - i n t he amount of at l east 40 mi l l i on dol l ar s on behal f

of dr ug car t el s and r evol ut i onar y par ami l i t ar y or gani zat i ons i n

Col ombi a.

Essent i al l y, t he Gover nment has evi dence that Mr .

Lust gar t en pur por t s t o r un a so- cal l ed pur chase or der f i nanci ng

company based i n mul t i pl e count r i es t hat wi l l l oan i ndi vi dual s money

f or t he f i nanci ng of goods i n i nt er nat i onal t r ade.

The Government has evi dence on wi r et aps and el sewher e t hat

t hi s i s a f al se, t hat he i s not i n t he pur chase or f i nance busi ness.

He i s s i mpl y usi ng t hat as a cover t o l aunder money f or dr ug car t el s

and ot her s.

He t akes advant age of a uni que si t uat i on i n Venezuel a, hi s

home count r y, wher e t her e i s a si gni f i cant r est r i ct i on - - I am not

sur e i f t he Cour t i s awar e, but on U. S. cur r ency i n t he count r y. So

t her e i s a par al l el or a bl ack mar ket , as i t i s known down t her e.

And so Mr . Lust gart en has made a busi ness of gatheri ng U. S.

dol l ar s and maki ng t hem avai l abl e i n pl aces wher e t hey ar e har d t o



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come by, such as Venezuel a. And t he si gni f i cance of t hat i s t he

sour ce of t hose dol l ar s, Mr . Lust gar t en i s wel l awar e t hat at l east

f or t y mi l l i on and possi bl y a hundr ed mi l l i on comes f r om dr ug car t el s

or par ami l i t ar y or gani zat i ons.

On t op of t hat , Your Honor , you wi l l see i n t he i ndi ct ment

t hat Mr . Lust gar t en al so st ands char ged wi t h t wo count s i nvol vi ng

t he obst r uct i on of a j udi ci al pr oceedi ng.

And t hat , essent i al l y, i s because Mr . Lust gar t en i s

basi cal l y a pr of essi onal l i ar t hat has been l yi ng t o t he DEA and t o

Homel and Secur i t y and t o the U. S. At t or ney' s Of f i ce i n Bost on f or

sever al year s.

There i s not hi ng he i s not wi l l i ng t o l i e about . He wi l l

l i e t o t hi s Cour t . And he cer t ai nl y wi l l not appear i n Bost on i f

r el eased under any ser i es of condi t i ons, Your Honor .

And f or t hose r easons, Your Honor , t he Government moves f or

det ent i on.

THE COURT: I n ot her words, he t est i f i ed bef ore a grand

j ury proceedi ng? I s t hat t he i dea?

MR. PALAZZO: No, he di d not .

He had sever al i nt er vi ews t hat t he Cour t coul d hear

t est i mony about f r omSpeci al Agent Lavoi e where he made st atement s

about hi s busi ness t hat wer e mat er i al l y f al se.

Par t of hi s scheme was al so t o go ar ound and t o br ag t o

pot ent i al cl i ent s t hat he was cooper at i ng wi t h DEA and t hat he had

some sor t of speci al per mi ssi on t o move i l l i ci t f unds wi t h t he



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knowl edge of t he Gover nment . That i s mat er i al l y f al se and t hat i s

part and parcel wi t h hi s scheme.

THE COURT: Do you wi sh t o exami ne t he agent ?

MR. DI AMOND: Yes, absol ut el y.

THE COURT: Go ahead and cal l t he agent .

MR. DI AMOND: J ust so I coul d - -

THE COURT: J ust cal l t he agent .

MR. DI AMOND: Okay.

( Wi t ness swor n. )

THE COURTROOM DEPUTY: Pl ease st at e your name, f or t he

r ecor d, spel l i ng your f i r st and l ast name.

THE WI TNESS: Phi l i p, P- H- I - L- I - P; l ast name, Lavoi e,

L- A- V- O- I - E.

SPECI AL AGENT LAVOI E, GOVERNMENT' S WI TNESS SWORN

CROSS EXAMI NATI ON

BY MR. DI AMOND:

Q. Mr . Lavoi e, you ar e an agent t hat i s f r om t he Bost on Di vi si on

of t hi s case, cor r ect ?

A. That ' s cor rect .

THE COURT: Whi ch agency? I ' m sor r y.

THE WI TNESS: I am wi t h Homel and Secur i t y I nvest i gat i ons.

BY MR. DI AMOND:

Q. And t her e wer e ot her agent s i nvol ved i n t hi s i nvest i gat i on,

correct?

A. Yes.



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Q. And i n other j ur i sdi ct i ons, cor rect?

A. Yes.

Q. I ncl udi ng t he Sout hern Di str i ct of Fl or i da, corr ect ?

A. That i s cor rect .

Q. Wer e you i nvol ved wi t h t he Rosemount account s - -

A. Not di r ect l y.

Q. - - i n 2009?

A. Not di r ect l y, no.

Q. That was a sei zur e, was i t not , i n Bost on, cor r ect?


Q. And i n f act , t hose f unds wer e sei zed f r om numer ous compani es

and wer e put t oget her , I t hi nk, i n t hi s case.

You have a name f or i t . Al t hough i t ' s got about f i ve i nches of

document s t hat deal wi t h t he af f i davi t s and al l .

But Rosemount was par t of a gi ant gr oup of corporat i ons t hat

you had under i nvest i gat i on, you, meani ng the U. S. Gover nment ,

correct?

A. As I under stand t hat i nvesti gat i on, t hat i s corr ect . I was not

di r ect l y i nvol ved i n i t i n any way.

Q. And par t of t hat i nvest i gat i on i nvol ved t hr ee compani es t hat

Mr . Lust gar t en was i nvol ved i n?

A. I ' m not sur e of t he exact number of compani es.

Q. I ' m sor r y. Two compani es.

And t hose moni es t hat were sei zed wer e ul t i mat el y retur ned t o

Mr . Lust gar t en i n t hat l i t i gat i on, cor r ect ?



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A. I t ' s my under st andi ng t hat at l east a por t i on of t he pr oceeds

wer e r et ur ned t o hi m. I ' m not - - I ' m not awar e of t he t ot al

number s.

Q. About 90 per cent of i t . So he woul d not have t o pay t he

at t or ney, I gat her , cor r ect?

A. (No audi bl e response. )

Q. So t he l i t i gat i on woul dn' t cont i nue t he at t or ney' s f ees. I t

was more of a set t l ement f or conveni ence, corr ect?

A. I cannot answer that . I don' t know.

Q. You di dn' t r evi ew t he document s?

A. Not regardi ng t hat case.

Q. You di dn' t r evi ew t he paper s and t he moni es t hat wer e gi ven

back t o Mr . Lust gar t en?

A. I n that case not al l of them.

Q. And i n f act , t hat ' s a par t of what t hi s i ndi ct ment i s about , i s

i t not ?

A. I t i s.

Q. I t i s the l i t i gat i on i n Rosemount , cor r ect ?


Q. So i t ' s your upset of gi vi ng back 90 per cent of t he moni es

sei zed f r om Mr . Lust gar t en t hat cont i nued on wi t h t hi s f r om 2009 t o

t he pr esent , cor r ect ?

A. That ' s not cor r ect .

Q. Mr . Lust gar t en has a company cal l ed Henl ux, cor r ect ?

A. Yes.



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Q. And Henl ux i s a f i nanci ng company, cor r ect ?

A. I bel i eve i t ' s purchase order f i nanci ng.

Q. Purchase order f i nanci ng.

And that i s what t he pr osecut or spoke to when he got up here i n

maki ng hi s pr of f er .

And t hat i s i f you ar e doi ng busi ness i n a f or ei gn count r y, you

can' t get pai d r i ght away, cor r ect ?

A. Not i n al l f or ei gn count r i es.

Q. Venezuel a, par t i cul ar l y?

A. Par t i cul ar l y, yes, there i s cur r ency cont rol s .

Q. I f you ar e sendi ng goods t o Venezuel a, you can' t get pai d by

t he i mport er i mmedi atel y, can you?

A. As I unders tand i t , that ' s cor rect .

Q. So i t has t o be f i nanced, cor r ect? I f you need f i nanci ng,

correct?

A. You woul d need t o do so on t he bl ack mar ket .

Q. So i f I ' m an Amer i can and I ' m sendi ng goods t o Venezuel a and I

want t o get pai d f or t hose goods, I woul d go t o somebody who can do

f i nanci ng, cor r ect ?


Q. That ' s cal l ed t r ade f i nanci ng?

A. Yes.

Q. And i n f act , t hat ' s what Mr . Lustgar t en' s busi ness i s i n

Venezuel a and i n ot her pl aces, cor r ect ?

A. He procl ai med i t to be.



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Q. And i n f act, we have t o deal wi t h l ot s of document s, cor r ect?

Fi nanci al document s, cor r ect ?

A. Gener al l y.

Q. I n t hi s case?

A. Yes.

Q. And i n t hi s case, t her e ar e l ot s of f i nanci al document s,

correct?


Q. And t hey deal wi t h ar e numer ous cor por at i ons, cor r ect ?


Q. And numer ous i ndi vi dual s, cor r ect?


Q. And t her e i s a gent l eman by t he name of Bendayan, cor r ect ?

A. Yes.

Q. And he i s somebody who you have your si ght s on, cor r ect ?


Q. And he was r unni ng a bi g gr oup of peopl e, cor r ect ?

A. He was i nvol ved t he conspi r acy.

Q. And you got sear ch war r ant s - - or excuse me - - Ti t l e 3s, t he

wi r et ap or der s f or Mr . Bendayan, cor r ect ?

A. I was not t he af f i ant .

Q. You, meani ng, your gr oup, your agency, cor r ect ?


Q. And you got i t agai nst ot her peopl e, di d you not ?

A. Yes, si r .



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Q. You never got one f or any phones t hat deal wi t h Mr . Lust gar t en,

correct?

A. I don' t bel i eve so.

Q. You don' t bel i eve you di d, di d you?

A. I don' t bel i eve so.

Q. Okay. And you di d over hear cer t ai n conver sat i ons, t hough,

between t hi s Bendayan and Mr . Lust gart en, corr ect ?


Q. And one of t hose conver sat i ons, i n f act, you put bef or e t he

gr and j ur y, cor r ect ?


Q. Now, you say you don' t speak Spani sh; i s t hat cor r ect ?


Q. Numer ous of t hose cal l s wer e i n Spani sh, cor r ect ?


Q. Some wer e i n Hebr ew, cor r ect ?


Q. Do you under st and what Kosher means?

A. I under st and i t t o be good, or r el at i vel y speaki ng, okay.

Q. I t i s a di et ar y l aw, cor r ect ?

A. I bel i eve so.

Q. Okay. And when somebody i s doi ng somet hi ng Kosher , t hey ar e

doi ng i t pr oper l y, cor r ect l y accor di ng t o l aw, cor r ect ?

A. Yes.

Q. And i n f act , you hear d t hat conver sat i on bet ween Mr . Lust gar t en



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Dej oy and Mr . Lust gart en - -

A. Yes.

Q. - - under t hese f i nanci al t ransact i ons?

A. Yes.

THE COURT: So i s t hat what t he obst r uct i on charge i s based

upon that he was pr ovi di ng i nf ormat i on t hat t he Gover nment bel i eves

was f al se?

THE WI TNESS: Yes, t hat ' s cor r ect .

BY MR. DI AMOND:

Q. And t her e wer e ot her occasi ons when he wor ked wi t h Mr . Dej oy

t hat r el at ed t o anot her t r ansact i on t hat you saw hi m - - di d you see

hi m i n Col ombi a?

A. That ' s cor r ect . I di d.

Q. Okay. And at t hat t i me, Mr . Lust gar t en was wi t h a gr oup of

peopl e, cor r ect ?


Q. And t hat was, what , Sept ember of l ast year ?

A. Yes.

Q. And t hen, he saw you and he cal l ed you out ?

A. Yes.

Q. And that he knew you because he had been wi t h you and Mr . Dej oy

bef or e, cor r ect ?


Q. And he came and, t hen, when he cal l ed you out you went out si de

and di scussed t hi ngs wi t h hi m?



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Q. And t hese i nf or mant t hi ngs bet ween agent s are somewhat t ouchy

ar e t hey not?


Q. I f you have a CS and someone el se has a CS, you do not nor mal l y

st ep on t he ot her guy' s CS, cor r ect ?


Q. I nf or mat i on i s not pr ovi ded bet ween agent s, necessar i l y, except

on a need- t o- know basi s, cor r ect ?


Q. Okay. That ' s why you ar e cal l ed a cont r ol agent and Mr . Dej oy

woul d be cal l ed a cont r ol agent , cor r ect ?


Q. And Mr . Dej oy was a cont r ol agent as i t r el at ed t o Mr .

Lust gar t en, cor r ect ?

A. I knew t hat Mr . Dej oy was t he pr i mar y cont act f or Mr .

Lust gar t en.

Q. And when you saw Mr . Lust gar t en at a hot el i n Col ombi a, he

cal l ed you out and you spoke, cor r ect ?


Q. And he t hought t hat t her e was somet hi ng wr ong wi t h t hat

t r ansacti on, cor r ect?

A. What do you mean?

Q. The t r ansact i on he was i n Col ombi a t o deal wi t h?

A. I ' m not c l ear on your quest i on.



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Q. I n your r epor t - -

A. Yes.

Q. He i ndi cat ed t hat he t ol d you - - excuse me - - I t hi nk you even

t est i f i ed t o i t i n t he gr and j ur y.

That he t ol d you he woul d be cont act i ng you because he di dn' t

l i ke t hi s par t i cul ar t r ansact i on, cor r ect?

A. He sai d t hat at t hat poi nt i n t i me, he was goi ng t o be - - he

was meet i ng wi t h t hese peopl e.

And that what we had j ust seen that he was openi ng bags, but he

was goi ng t o af t er - t he- f act , even t hough he had opened an account ,

he woul d r each out t o Br i an Dej oy.

Q. Because i t was not Kosher or a hundr ed per cent by t he book,

correct?

A. Meani ng, he sai d he was goi ng t o r el ay t he i nf or mat i on. I ' m

not awar e of i t .

MR. DI AMOND: I f I coul d j ust have one moment , pl ease.

I don' t have anyt hi ng f ur t her wi t h t hi s wi t ness.

THE COURT: Any quest i ons f r om t he Government ?

MR. PALAZZO: No, Your Honor .

THE COURT: Thank you very much, Agent Lavoi e.

Anythi ng el se f r omt he Gover nment ?

MR. PALAZZO: Yes, Your Honor . I j ust want t o make t wo

poi nt s.

The f i r st , I j ust want t o r emi nd t he Cour t t hat t he r eason

t hat Mr . Lust gar t en i s her e t oday i s because t he Di st r i ct Cour t i n



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Bost on f ound pr obabl e cause on al l or - - sorr y - - t he gr and j ur y

si t t i ng i n t he Di st r i ct of Massachuset t s f ound t her e t o be pr obabl e

cause t o br i ng t hese char ges, al l t hr ee.

And i n addi t i on, I t hi nk I may have mi sspoken ear l i er when

I sai d t hat t he Government bel i eves t hat some of t he st atement s t hat

Mr . Lust gar t en made t o DEA t hat we bel i eved t hey were f al se, t he

Government knows t hose st atement s t o be f al se.

Mr . Lust gar t en was t el l i ng pot ent i al cl i ent s t hat he had

t he bl essi ngs of DEA t o do al l ki nds of f i nanci al t r ansact i ons t hat

he di d not have permi ssi on t o do.

THE COURT: Okay.

MR. DI AMOND: I t hi nk t hat probabl y woul d come best f r om my

cl i ent , but what I am goi ng t o ask the Cour t t o do i s t o accept t he

r ecommendat i on of Pr et r i al Ser vi ces i n t hei r r epor t .

I have bef or e t he Cour t , i f t he Cour t want s t o hear i t at

t hi s t i me, i n r egar ds t o t i es t o t he communi t y. I have pr esent i n

t he cour t r oom numerous peopl e who st and behi nd Mr . Lust gart en.

THE COURT: What al t ernat i ve do I have t o det ent i on as i t

r el at es t o hi m?

MR. DI AMOND: I t hi nk t he Cour t shoul d f ol l ow t he

r ecommendat i on of t he Pr et r i al Ser vi ces r epor t and t hat i s a

percent age bond i s r espect f ul l y recommended wi t h t he f ol l owi ng

speci al condi t i ons.

And I t hi nk t hat t her e ar e condi t i ons, i ncl udi ng t he

el ect r oni c moni t or i ng, whi ch i s not ment i oned her e. I t i s j ust t hi s



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i s a compl ex case, as t he Cour t can see. Ther e ar e subst ant i al t i es

between r el at i ves and f r i ends, besi des t he home that he owns and has

owned f or a subst ant i al per i od of t i me.

So I woul d ask t he Cour t t o set a bond, a r easonabl e bond

wi t h such condi t i ons as t he Cour t deems necessary as i ndi cated by

Pr et r i al Ser vi ces Repor t as di r ect ed. Sur r ender t r avel document s.

They have al r eady been surr ender ed.

Not vi si t i ng any t r anspor t at i on est abl i shment s. That ' s not

a pr obl em at al l . And r esi de at t he r esi dence wi t h a cur f ew, but at

l east gi ve me the oppor t uni t y t o wor k wi t h hi m f or a def ense of a

ver y compl ex case.

I t was j ust di f f i cul t enough i n t he l ast coupl e of days f or

me t o go t hrough document s wi t h hi m because of t he manner i n whi ch

he i s bei ng housed. And t hat t r avel be ext ended si mpl y between t he

Sout her n Di st r i ct of Fl or i da and Massachuset t s and nowher e el se.

THE COURT: And what about hi s i mmi grat i on st at us and t he

f act t hat he has Venezuel an ci t i zenshi p.

MR. DI AMOND: We are pr epared t o deal wi t h, i f he post s

bond her e, t o deal wi t h i t at Kr ome wi t h an i mmi gr at i on j udge. I ' ve

done t hi s i n t he past .

THE COURT: What about hi s Venezuel an ci t i zenshi p? Doesn' t

t hat pose a pr obl em f or ext r adi t i on?

MR. DI AMOND: Absol utel y not .

He has a vi sa and t hey wi l l ext r adi t e i n a hear t beat .

Par t i cul ar l y i n a case l i ke t hi s . Par t i cul ar l y i n a case l i ke t hi s



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Col ombi a.

Theref or e, t hi s i s not a man t hat comes bef ore t he Cour t

very of t en. He has t r emendous f i nanci al means and he has a net work

of cont act s al l ar ound t he wor l d t hat wi l l i mmedi at el y hel p hi m

abscond f r om t he Uni t ed St at es i f he i s not det ai ned.

THE COURT: Oh, I t hi nk I may have asked you. What t i es

does he have t o t he Di st r i ct of Massachuset t s?

MR. DI AMOND: He has a daughter t hat goes t o school t here.

THE COURT: What do you mean goes t o school t her e?

MR. DI AMOND: Bost on Uni ver si t y.

THE COURT: Any ot her asset s or does he have peopl e l i vi ng

t her e?

MR. DI AMOND: Asset s her e, no.

THE COURT: Okay.

MR. DI AMOND: Hi s asset s are her e; a home.

Hi s f at her - i n- l aw i s her e and i s wi l l i ng t o si gn. Ther e

ar e pl ent y of co- sur et i es t hat ar e her e and t her e i s an out pour i ng

of peopl e who have come her e. I t hi nk every one of t hem i s pr epared

t o si gn.

MR. PALAZZO: Your Honor, hi s assets ar e not j ust here i n

Sout h Fl or i da or i n t he Uni t ed St at es.

He has asset s i n at l east t hr ee cont i nent s t hat we know of ,

at t hi s poi nt . He has access t o mi l l i ons of dol l ar s. Ther e i s no

amount of money - - he i s f aci ng 20 year s i n pr i son. Ther e i s no

amount of money t hat he woul d not be wi l l i ng to gi ve up i n or der t o



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busi ness t hat was desi gned t o get around Venezuel an money, curr ency

l aws.

MR. PALAZZO: Wel l , Your Honor , t hat i s an i nt er est i ng

t heor y, but I don' t know of any t r ack recor d i n r ecent year s of any

ext r adi t ees f r om Venezuel a.

And par t and parcel wi t h the scheme t hat t he Gover nment has

evi dence on i s t hat Mr . Lust gar t en i s wor ki ng wi t h par ami l i t ar y

or gani zat i ons and car t el s t hat cont r ol par t s of Venezuel a and

Col ombi a.

As t he Cour t i s wel l aware, t he Government of Col ombi a and

Venezuel a don' t necessar i l y gover n al l t er r i t or i es t her e. And i n

f act , some of t he moni es t hat he i s accused of l aunder i ng f ur t her s

t hese endeavor s out si de t he bi g ci t i es i n Venezuel a.

MR. DI AMOND: I di d not hear any of t hat f r om t he agent i f

t hey had t hat .

To me i t i s j ust t ot al f ant asy. To me i t i s t hrow what ever

you can at a Cour t t o keep a per son who i s accused. To keep a

per son who i s not gui l t y, as he st ands bef or e t hi s Cour t , t o keep

hi m l ocked up and put as much pressure as you can on hi m.

I t hi nk i t ' s l aughabl e t hat t he agent ' s t est i mony i s t hat

i t i s not even dr ug money. That i t i s money t hat was par t of a

t r ade si t uat i on. And t hat ' s what t hey t al k about i n t hei r - - I j ust

got some of t he paperwork.

There i s ki t chen equi pment bei ng sol d t o Venezuel a. I t was

t hat t ype of t hi ng. I t was heavy dut y equi pment . That t ype of



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t hi ng and I amj ust goi ng t hr ough i t . I mean, dr ug money comes i nt o

i t because i t i s an easy thi ng t o say and i t i s an easy thi ng t o get

a Cour t upset over , but t here has been no showi ng of t hat . None.

MR. PALAZZO: Your Honor , t her e has been a showi ng of

pr obabl e cause i n Massachuset t s t hat he was l aunderi ng t ens of

mi l l i ons of dol l ar s f or dr ug car t el s.

THE COURT: Okay. The quest i on f or me i s r eal l y, as I si t

her e on behal f of t he Di st r i ct of Massachuset t s, i s whet her or not

t her e i s suf f i ci ent t i es or means of secur i ng t he Def endant ' s

appearance i n Massachuset t s because t hat i s where the i ndi ct ment i s

based out of .

Rat her t he gr and j ur y, t he Di st r i ct of Massachuset t s has

accused hi m of pr ovi di ng f al se i nf or mat i on i n t hat di st r i ct but i n

addi t i on, di st r i but i ng money, l aunder i ng pr oceeds i n connect i on wi t h

dr ug t r af f i cki ng acti vi t i es i n vi ol at i on of f eder al l aw.

Now, gi ven t he f act t hat he has no cr i mi nal hi st or y, even

i n a money l aunder i ng case of t en a bond i s grant ed i n a case.

Al t hough, t hi s case i nvol ves a subst ant i al amount of money, f ar mor e

t han I have ever seen, number one.

Mor e i mpor t ant l y t han t hat , t her e ar e si gni f i cant f or ei gn

t i es t hat t he Def endant has i ncl udi ng t o - - al t hough, I hear what

Mr . Di amond has t o say about i t , but t her e i s never t hel ess a concer n

t hat i f he wer e t o f l ee, he woul d not be ext r adi t abl e gi ven t he

gover nment al si t uat i on i n Venezuel a.

So at t hi s poi nt , what I am goi ng t o do, I am goi ng t o - - I



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coul d see t hough, where a cour t coul d f ashi on by maybe t here i s some

way t o house hi m i n Massachuset t s pendi ng t he dur at i on of t he bond

wher e t he cour t i n Massachuset t s may deci de t hat t hey can come up

wi t h an al t er nat i ve t o det ent i on i f he i s adequat el y secur ed up

t her e. I t i s possi bl e i f t hat i s t he case i n a money l aunder i ng

case. I don' t know.

So j ust based upon t he i nf ormat i on that has been pr esent ed

t o me, gi ven t he extensi ve f or ei gn t i es and t he nat ur e of t he

pr oceedi ngs, I t hi nk ther e i s a suf f i ci ent basi s t o hol d hi m

st r i ct l y as a r i sk of f l i ght .

And al so, gi ven t he amount of money i nvol ved f or whi ch

$100, 000 cor por at e suret y bond woul d not be suf f i ci ent .

MR. DI AMOND: Wel l , I can' t - -

THE COURT: So I wi l l grant t he Government ' s mot i on f or

det ent i on based on r i sk of f l i ght at t hi s poi nt i n t i me.

You have a r i ght t o appeal t hat deci si on, Mr . Lust gar t en,

i n Massachuset t s. And t he cour t i n Massachuset t s coul d cer t ai nl y

l ook at your case and deci de t hat i t i s not deservi ng of det ent i on.

Especi al l y, i f i n t he i nt er i m per i od you ar e abl e t o

pr esent evi dence t hat under mi nes the gr and j ur y' s i ndi ct ment . Al l I

have i s what i s i n f r ont of me and t he al l egat i on of t he Gover nment

and t he gr and j ur y t hat i s i n f r ont of me.

So i f t he cour t i n Massachuset t s want s t o change my or der,

t hey cer t ai nl y have t hat r i ght and j ur i sdi ct i on t o do so, but i n t he

meant i me, I amgoi ng t o gr ant t he Government ' s mot i on.



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MR. DI AMOND: What I was goi ng t o suggest was, t hen, mor e

t han $100, 0000 t hat t he Cour t has t al ked about .

He has hi s whol e f ami l y her e al l wi l l i ng t o si gn. He i s

never goi ng t o do t hat t o hi s f ami l y. He i s goi ng t o see t hi s t hi ng

t hr ough. Par t i cul ar l y when you see t he af f i davi t s and t he document s

and t he paperwork. I t makes no sense. He want s t o see i t t hr ough.

He saw i t t hr ough i n 2009.

THE COURT: I hear you, but I t hi nk a suf f i ci ent case has

been made and I t hi nk t hat you shoul d pr esent t hat argument t o t he

Di st r i ct of Massachuset t s, okay.

MR. DI AMOND: Thank you, Your Honor .

THE COURT: Si gn t he wai ver . Mr . Di amond i s havi ng hi m

si gn t he wai ver .

Are we done? Okay.

( Ther eupon, t he pr oceedi ngs concl uded. )



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CERTI FI CATE

I her eby cer t i f y t hat t he f or egoi ng t r anscr i pt i s

an accur at e t r anscr i pt of t he audi o recor ded pr oceedi ngs i n t he

above- ent i t l ed mat t er .

04/ 24/ 15 Bonni e J oy Lewi s ,Regi st er ed Pr of essi onal Repor t er CASE LAW REPORTI NG, I NC. 7001 Sout hwest 13 St r eet , Pembr oke Pi nes, Fl or i da 33023 954- 985- 8875

Imputación contra M. Lustgarten

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