Press Release
THREE MIAMI AREA RESIDENTS INDICTED FOR ILLEGAL IMPORTATION OF FISH FROM NICARAGUA
April 30, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, Hal Robbins, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Special Agent in Charge (SAC), and Colonel Julie Jones, Director of Law Enforcement, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWCC), announced that defendant Rodolfo Julio Rego, 55, formerly of Miami, was arrested by Nicaraguan law enforcement authorities on April 25, 2008, and returned to the United States by NOAA agents on April 27, 2008. Defendant Rego is now in custody and faces conspiracy and money laundering charges stemming from a November 2007 22-count Indictment. Rego is being held on $100,000 ten percent (10%) bond; $25,000 corporate surety bond and a $375,000 personal surety bond, because he poses a risk-of-flight.
In addition to Rego, Miami residents, Carlos German Berdeal, 65, Lilliam Pastrana Berdeal, 58, and Carlos Seafood, Inc., were also charged in the 2007 Indictment with conspiring to import illegal fish, and with misbranding violations.
According to the allegations in the Indictment and statements in court, from July 1999 to February 2004, Rego, along with Carlos and Lilliam Pastrana, owners of Carlos Seafood, Inc., served as part owner and manager of two seafood processing companies in Nicaragua, named Carodi and Pesca Fresca. During the time alleged in the Indictment, Rego oversaw the processing, packing, and illegal export into the United States of snook, known throughout Nicaragua and the Caribbean as “Róbalo.” In the United States, the commercial purchase, sale, and storage of snook is prohibited by state and federal law. To circumvent these laws, Rego and his co-defendants participated in a scheme to falsely label the snook as “Sea Bass” and “Golden Sea Bass” for importation into the United States. The seafood was later sold in the United States and elsewhere as higher priced grouper fillets. Rego’s packaging and labeling of the snook in Nicaragua also violated Nicaraguan and U.S. laws regarding safe food handling.
If convicted of the charges in the Indictment, Rego and the Berdeals would each face up to 248 years incarceration and fines of up to $2,663,000.00. Carlos Seafood, Inc., would face fines of up to $2.5 million. The case has been assigned to United States District Judge Adalberto Jordan. A trial date has not yet been set.
Mr. Acosta commended the efforts of NOAA, U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Services, U.S. food and Drug Administration, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the State of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. In addition, U.S. Attorney specifically thanked Nicaraguan law enforcement authorities and the Nicaraguan Attorney General for effectuating Rego’s arrest and return to the United States. This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Norman O. Hemming, III.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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