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So your probably sitting there with this Civil Investigative Demand from DOJ or CBP about customs fraud and your entire import business is collapsing. Maybe you transshipped goods to avoid tariffs. Maybe there’s issues with country of origin declarations. Or maybe your just caught up in there latest antidumping enforcement sweep. Look, we get it. Your ABSOLUTELY PETRIFIED. And you should be! Because a Florida couple got 57 MONTHS in federal prison and importers are paying TENS OF MILLIONS in settlements!
Let me explain the customs nightmare your facing. DOJ has shifted entire fraud units to focus on tariff evasion – its now one of there TOP 10 enforcement priorities!
The False Claims Act applies to ANY customs fraud! Every entry form, every invoice, every country of origin certificate becomes a potential false claim! Undervalue goods by 10%? FALSE CLAIM! Wrong HTS classification? Fraud! Transship through Vietnam to avoid China tariffs? CRIMINAL CONSPIRACY! We’ve seen legitimate importers destroyed for paperwork errors!
Here’s what’s really scary – treble damages plus penalties can reach $62 MILLION! Repwire faces $11 million in duties PLUS $62 million in penalties for aluminum wire imports! One shipment classification error can bankrupt your company!
Hold onto your import license because these numbers will destroy everything!
Allied Stone paid $12.4 MILLION for quartz imports! Precision Cable paid $10 million for undervaluing by 70%! That flooring company? $8.1 million! These aren’t huge multinationals – there regular importers crushed by DOJ!
Criminal penalties are DEVASTATING – customs fraud carries up to 20 years prison! Each false entry is separate count! Conspiracy adds 5 years! Money laundering another 20 years! The Florida couple got 57 months AND $42 million forfeiture!
AD/CVD violations are particularly CATASTROPHIC! CBP enforces over 500 AD/CVD orders covering everything from steel to solar panels!
Didn’t know your product had AD/CVD order? TOO BAD! Rate changed retroactively? You owe millions! Supplier lied about origin? YOUR liable! We’ve seen importers owe 300% duties on goods they sold years ago at a loss!
The EAPA investigations are brutal – CBP has 300 days to destroy you! They presume guilt! Interim measures freeze your imports immediately! No due process! Your business dies while “investigation” drags on!
Your probably wondering “How did CBP find out?” Let me tell you what puts importers in DOJ’s crosshairs:
Whistleblowers get 15-30% of recoveries! Competitor knows your supply chain? They’re filing qui tam lawsuit! Freight forwarder has documents? There talking to lawyers! Even your customs broker might report you for reward!
EAPA allegations from domestic manufacturers! They monitor every import! See price too low? File EAPA allegation! Can’t compete? Claim your evading duties! We’ve seen successful importers destroyed by failing competitors weaponizing EAPA!
Transshipment prosecutions are EXPLODING! DOJ calls it “country of origin fraud” and treats it as criminal conspiracy!
Routed Chinese goods through Vietnam? FRAUD! Added minor processing in Malaysia? Not substantial transformation! Used third-country invoices? Money laundering! We’ve seen executives imprisoned for supply chain decisions made by overseas suppliers!
The “substantial transformation” test is impossibly vague! Assembly doesn’t count! Packaging definitely doesn’t! Even manufacturing might not qualify! CBP decides retroactively that your wrong – you owe millions plus criminal prosecution!
ABSOLUTELY! And DOJ is aggressively prosecuting! Criminal Division now prioritizes trade fraud!
Recent prosecutions are terrifying! Executives personally indicted! Not just companies – CEOs, import managers, even logistics coordinators! Using personal criminal liability to force cooperation! We’ve seen entire management teams face conspiracy charges!
The wire fraud statute makes every email about imports potential crime! False statement in entry documents? 5 years prison! Conspiracy to evade duties? Another 5 years! Stack them up – executives face DECADES in federal prison!
The scope is absolutely overwhelming! DOJ demands EVERYTHING about your imports:
Every entry summary and commercial invoice, purchase orders and supplier contracts, emails about pricing and origin, bank records showing payments, freight forwarder documentation, certificates of origin, even WhatsApp messages with suppliers!
For AD/CVD investigations its worse – production records from foreign factories, corporate ownership structures, cost build-ups and profit margins, tooling and machinery invoices! How do you get documents from Chinese supplier who won’t cooperate? You can’t! That’s obstruction!
Prepare for YEARS of import paralysis! Trade investigations are incredibly complex:
Initial CID response (60 days to produce everything), CBP/DOJ document review (6-12 months), trace shipments and money flows (6-12 months), False Claims Act calculations (6-12 months), criminal referral decision (6 months), settlement or prosecution (12-24 months)!
Your looking at 3-5 years MINIMUM! During this time, CBP flags every shipment, bonds get called, containers held for exam, and customers flee to competitors! Legal fees? Expect $750,000 to $2 million! We’ve seen thriving importers liquidate during investigations!
Prior disclosure to CBP is a TRAP when DOJ’s involved! Voluntary disclosure doesn’t prevent False Claims Act!
You admit violations in writing! Becomes evidence against you! Still face treble damages! Only get penalty mitigation IF approved! We’ve seen importers disclose minor errors only to face criminal prosecution based on there own admissions!
But not disclosing when you know? Worse! Continued imports with knowledge = willful violation! Enhanced criminal penalties! Each entry after discovery is separate criminal count! Your damned either way!
UFLPA violations DESTROY importers! Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act presumes guilt!
Any connection to Xinjiang? Goods seized! Can’t prove complete supply chain? Detained forever! Third-tier supplier you never heard of? YOUR responsible! We’ve seen million-dollar shipments abandoned because importer couldn’t prove negative!
The rebuttable presumption is impossible! Need documentation from Chinese government that doesn’t exist! Audit factories CBP won’t identify! Prove zero Xinjiang content in raw materials! Its designed to be impossible!
Trade investigations trigger IMMEDIATE financial consequences! Banks treat you as high-risk!
Trade finance disappears! Letters of credit cancelled! Lines of credit called! Insurance companies won’t cover cargo! Bonds become impossible to obtain! We’ve seen importers unable to clear containers because surety companies fled!
Supply chain collapses! Suppliers demand cash in advance! Freight forwarders hold cargo for payment! Customers cancel orders! Your business strangles while investigation proceeds!
Look, we’re not your typical customs lawyers who just file protests. We’re federal criminal defense attorneys who specialize in keeping importers out of federal prison when customs issues become criminal prosecutions!
We understand HTS classification complexity and substantial transformation rules. We know how CBP calculates duties and how DOJ applies False Claims Act. We can challenge country of origin determinations and AD/CVD calculations. Most importantly, we prevent civil investigations from becoming criminal cases!
Other firms tell you to cooperate with CBP and pay the duties. That’s EXACTLY how importers end up in federal prison! The government doesn’t care about trade compliance – they want False Claims Act recoveries and criminal convictions. We fight strategically, protecting your freedom and business!
Call us RIGHT NOW at 212-300-5196
Trade investigations destroy import businesses overnight!
Former DOJ prosecutors – Customs fraud defense experts – Available 24/7!
Don’t wait another second! DOJ is tracing your shipments! CBP is calculating duties owed! Whistleblowers are meeting with prosecutors! Your containers are being examined! Every import increases liability!
Remember – customs fraud isn’t about paying duties anymore. Its about federal prison and business destruction. One misclassification, one origin error, one valuation mistake can trigger criminal prosecution and bankruptcy. You need someone who understands trade complexity AND federal criminal defense. Call us NOW before that CID becomes handcuffs!
Very diligent, organized associates; got my case dismissed. Hard working attorneys who can put up with your anxiousness. I was accused of robbing a gemstone dealer. Definitely A law group that lays out all possible options and best alternative routes. Recommended for sure.
- ROBIN, GUN CHARGES ROBIN
NJ CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEYS