July 17, 2009
KOREAN NATIONALS APPEAR IN COURT
AFTER EXTRADITION FROM CANADA
The Office of the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont announced that on July 15, 2009, two Korean Nationals were arraigned in United States District Court in Burlington, Vermont. Chol Min Jang, 51, and Dal Sung Jang, 46, both pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiracy to smuggle aliens into the United States. A co-defendant Jun Park, 52, also a Korean National, was arraigned on June 15, 2009, and pleaded not guilty to conspiring to smuggle aliens into the United States, and to a substantive count of bringing aliens to the United States on November 21, 2006, for the purpose of commercial advantage and private financial gain. All three defendants have been detained.
According to court documents, the conspirators charged South Koreans $5,000 to $10,000 to be smuggled into the United States. The aliens would fly to Canada and then travel to Toronto where they would be met by the defendants and be given a place to stay for a short while. They would then be driven to areas just north of the border and led across the border on foot. Drivers working for the conspirators would meet the aliens south of the border and drive them to New York City.
The court documents also show that in November, 2006 Park arranged with a Korean man, who was living in the United States, to act as a driver. Park drove into the United States on November 19, 2006, and rented a van, specifically asking for one with Vermont plates. Park then returned to Canada and the next day drove five illegal aliens from South Korea from the Toronto area to a place in Canada just north of Derby Line, Vermont. The aliens then ran across the border, on one of the unguarded streets which cross the border in Derby Line, and got into the van which Park had rented and which was driven by the man hired by Park. Border Patrol agents later stopped the van and arrested the occupants.
Canadian authorities arrested the defendants in 2008, based on warrants obtained by the United States Attorney for the District of Vermont. After extradition proceedings in Canada, Canadian Authorities turned over the defendants to representatives of the U.S Marshals Service. All of the defendants face potential sentences of 10 years in prison, however the United States Attorney stated that the Indictment is an accusation only and that the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty
The investigation is being handled by United States Border Patrol and by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney James J. Gelber. Chol Min Jang is represented by Nancy J. Waples, Esq.; Dal Sung Jang is represented by Lisa Shelkrot, Esq.; and Jun Park is represented by Alison S. Arms, Esq. of the Federal Public Defender’s Office.
