Summary

On June 17, 2010, Jorge Cascante, owner and operator of Cas Honeycomb, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Repair Station located in Miami, Florida, was sentenced in United States District Court, Fort Lauderdale, Florida to 30 months imprisonment, followed by 2 years supervised release.  Cascante's sentencing is based on his March 2010, guilty plea to charges of aircraft parts fraud associated with the manufacture of aircraft panel assemblies identified with Boeing parts numbers when he lacked the authority to apply the Boeing numbers.

This investigation was based on allegations that a conspiracy existed in which companies who were not approved by the FAA or Department of Defense (DoD) had manufactured aircraft parts for military and civilian use.  These manufacturers conspired with brokers and authorized DoD contractors to sell these unapproved aircraft parts to the United States Air Force (USAF).  In cases where the customer required supporting FAA authentication documents, brokers would further conspire with FAA repair stations to falsify FAA forms, giving the illusion that the manufactured parts had been approved by the FAA and were suitable for installation on an aircraft.

This investigation is being conducted jointly with Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security/US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, with the Federal Aviation Administration providing technical assistance.