In last month’s blog we warned those who conspire to circumvent U.S. tariffs on Chinese aluminum extrusions would be caught, prosecuted, and convicted. According to El Vocero de Puerto Rico , this week importers plead guilty to Federal Judge Francisco Besosa. As part of the plea agreement employers are fined $1,000 and face a forfeiture of $4 million. Samuel Garcia Adarme, Edrick García Vázquez, Armando García Vázquez, Carlos Minguela and PRP Trading Corporation will be sentenced on December 17. The article goes on to say, “The group was indicted by a Grand Jury on July 20, 2013, together with the companies Screens & Aluminum Industries Sales and Aluwest. According to the indictment, the conspiracy was for defendants Adarme García and García Vázquez brothers and Minguela Ortiz with assistance from Tang Piu Wong, [to] buy aluminum in China, Malaysia transported, repackaged it and created false invoices to make it appear that the Aluminum was originally from Malaysia a...
The Aluminum Extruders Council (AEC) has led the U.S. aluminum extrusion industry in achieving level competition by winning tariff protection that offsets unfair trade practices of extruders/importers of aluminum profiles produced in China. Our efforts have been of enormous value to domestic extruders and suppliers. Conservatively, an estimated 800 million pounds per year of extrusions are being produced in the U. S. that would have otherwise been lost to China.