US embassy cable - 04TEGUCIGALPA70

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 TEGUCIGALPA 000070 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
POSTS FOR DHS AND CONS 
STATE FOR WHA/CEN, CA/FPP, EB, AND DS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: CVIS, KFRD, KHLS, ASEC, KCRM, EFIN, PREL, HO 
SUBJECT: ALIEN SMUGGLERS OF CHINESE NATIONALITY ARRESTED IN 
HONDURAS; GOH ATTACKS CONTINUING ALIEN SMUGGLING FRAUD FROM 
CHINAZO PASSPORT SCAM 
 
Ref: 03 Tegucigalpa 002965 (NOTAL) 
 
1. (U) SUMMARY:  On December 9 and 11, Hu Weng RONG (DPOB: 
7/28/1975, China) and He Jia BIN (DPOB: 5/06/1975, China) 
were arrested in Honduras.  Both had obtained Honduran 
nationality in the early 1990s. The arrests were carried out 
by the Honduran General Directorate of Special Investigative 
Services (DGSEI-Police in the Ministry of Public Security) 
and the Honduran Public Ministry. Intelligence assessment 
was provided by DHS/Tegucigalpa. The individuals were key 
members of an international alien smuggling ring that 
specialized in bringing PRC citizens into Europe, the U.S. 
and Latin America with forged Honduran, Japanese, and 
Taiwanese passports and naturalization documents.  This 
organization's fee for smuggling services was US$60,000.00 
per alien.  Sixty-five percent of this fee, between 
US$35,000 to US$40,000, is the estimated cost of the 
documents.  The organization is linked to Juan Francisco 
Flores-Ochoa, a former employee of the Honduran immigration 
office. END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (U) BACKGROUND: During the early 1990s, the Honduran 
Congress passed a decree permitting the naturalization of a 
specific number of Chinese citizens who would invest in 
private sector enterprises in Honduras.  Nationality was 
acquired after a certain amount was paid into the Honduran 
Central Bank.  Unknown thousands of PRC citizens as well as 
persons from Hong Kong and Taiwan took advantage of this 
decree.  The advantage of holding a Honduran passport was 
that they could pass through countries in the European Union 
and Central America without a visa.  Abuses became 
widespread and eventually, authorities lost control over the 
process.  The vulnerability of Honduran systems for the 
issuance of passports, birth certificates, identification 
cards and driver's licenses became public knowledge. 
Individuals and organizations took advantage of the weak 
systems to start a scam that became known as "Chinazo".  In 
Chinazo, the aliens paid money directly to GOH officials or 
alien smugglers and were issued false documents indicating 
that they had become Honduran.  None of the money, however, 
was deposited in the Central Bank.  It is estimated that 
Chinazo netted millions of dollars for the perpetrators and 
no one has ever been prosecuted.  In spite of the repeal of 
the decree in 1996, a large number of false documents are 
still in circulation and are being used by alien smugglers. 
 
3.(U) To add to local problems, 1,600 Honduran passports 
were stolen from the passport office in San Pedro Sula in 
2001.  The GOH issued a world-wide alert detailing the 
theft.  In spite of the alert, Chinese travelers carrying 
stolen passports have been intercepted in Asia and Europe. 
A report from Germany stated that a citizen of Kazakhstan, 
who was involved in money laundering, had used a stolen 
Honduran passport to travel through Germany, by land. 
 
4. (SBU) In March 2002, two Lebanese citizens were arrested 
in Tegucigalpa attempting to leave Honduras with two of the 
stolen passports. Interestingly, they had entered Honduras 
using two other Honduran passports which had been issued to 
Honduran citizens, but which had been falsified. 
Investigations revealed that the Honorary Honduran Consul in 
Jordan, Faiz El Madi Khuri, sold twenty-five of the stolen 
passports in the Middle East. Of these twenty-five 
passports, only three have been intercepted. El Madi Khuri 
had obtained the passports from a former GOH Immigration 
employee, Juan Francisco Flores-Ochoa.  Flores-Ochoa spent 
seven months in jail after being fired from his immigration 
job during the theft investigation.  Flores-Ochoa remains at 
large in spite of the fact that local authorities issued a 
new warrant for his arrest (see paragraph 6 below.)  El Madi 
Khuri remains a fugitive from Honduran authorities and is 
reported to be residing in Kuwait. 
 
5. (SBU) Some stolen passports have been intercepted by U.S. 
Customs at the Miami International airport as they were 
being sent via DHL to China, Japan, Germany, Belgium, 
Argentina, Ireland, Spain, England and Hungary.  Customs 
Miami intercepted nine packages containing seventeen stolen 
Honduran passports.  DHL Airway bills from the packages 
revealed that the senders were located in Tegucigalpa and 
had used false names and addresses.  An ensuing 
investigation revealed the identity of several senders, 
including arrestee, Hu Weng Rong.  Also, DHS Rome reported 
that authorities in France intercepted two packages at the 
International airport in Roissy. One person was arrested in 
France.  DGSEI is continuing investigation of the use of DHL 
and other international courier services to send stolen 
passports abroad. 
 
6. (U) In June 2003, an Indian national, Pritesh 
Bhupendrabhai Patel, was arrested in San Pedro Sula for 
being in possession of one of the stolen passports.  His 
arrest led to the arrest and conviction of Nicolas 
Arquimides Cisneros, a citizen of El Salvador, on charges of 
alien smuggling and forgery of public documents.  An arrest 
warrant was also issued for Juan Francisco Flores-Ochoa on 
the same charges.  Flores-Ochoa has not yet been taken into 
custody. 
 
7. (SBU) In August 2003, the DGSEI temporarily halted 
investigation of Chinese smuggling activities because a 
police officer had disclosed confidential information to 
members of the Chinese community in Tegucigalpa.  However, 
during November, activities resumed.  On November 15, police 
arrested two PRC citizens traveling on forged Japanese 
passports.  They were being assisted by another PRC who 
became a naturalized Honduran. 
 
8. (U) Police surveillance also successfully tied Hu Weng 
RONG and several other members of the smuggling operation to 
Juan Francisco Flores-Ochoa.  On December 9, Hu Weng RONG 
was arrested at the San Pedro Sula airport on charges of 
alien smuggling and document forgery.  RONG had accompanied 
two other PRC citizens, traveling on forged Japanese 
passports.  The two had attempted to board a Sol Air flight 
to Miami.  Their arrest and further surveillance supported 
the issuance of a search warrant for residences of Hu Weng 
RONG.  At one residence, police found three unopened China 
Express packages with "passports" listed on the content 
labels.  Also, large numbers of false Honduran 
identification cards, false drivers licenses, false 
naturalization certificates, copies of airway bills for 
packages that had been intercepted by Customs/Miami, airway 
bills for packages mailed to He Jia BIN, two stolen Honduran 
passports with complete biographical information but no 
photographs, a laminating machine, rolls of laminate, and 
original seals from the Honduran Transit Police.  In 
addition, there were blank authorization forms for Honduran 
non-immigrant and immigrant visas that lacked only the 
signatures of the Director of Immigration, and blank 
stationery from the GOH Ministry of Government and Justice 
and Immigration offices.  There was also a check issued to 
Juan Francisco Flores-Ochoa and a notarized authorization 
form from Flores-Ochoa to HU Weng Rong, granting HU 
permission to drive Flores-Ochoa's vehicle throughout 
Central America. 
 
9. (U) The evidence that tied HU to HE Jia Bin was 
sufficient for the police to get search warrants for BIN's 
residence.  They found large numbers of naturalization 
certificates, forged migration seals from Honduras and 
Panama, Western Union money transfers amounting to more than 
sixty thousand U.S. dollars, and a large amount of cash in 
Lempiras as well as U.S. dollars. 
 
10. (U) He Jia BIN was ordered arrested on charges of 
forgery of public documents, possession of instruments for 
the forgery of public documents, money laundering and alien 
smuggling.  Hu Weng RONG was held on charges of forgery of 
public documents.  Both are being held without bail.  The 
Ministry of the Interior has openly expressed interest in 
revoking their naturalization. 
 
11. (SBU) DHS/Tegucigalpa has successfully identified other 
PRC and Honduran members of this alien smuggling 
organization and will coordinate with the Public Ministry 
and DGSEI in the continuing investigation. 
 
PALMER