ARTICLE - EATING ILLEGAL TAX RETURN CHQS

BSO: TAMARAC MAN TRIED TO EAT ILLEGAL CHECKS TO HIDE THEM
(Sun Sentinel) - Juan Ortega

FORT LAUDERDALE — A man arriving at a South Florida airport from Haiti was allegedly caught in possession of illegal tax return checks -- and tried to make them disappear by stuffing them in his mouth, according to the Broward Sheriff's Office.

Marc Saint Juste, a Haiti native who lives in Tamarac, was taken into custody over the weekend on 10 counts of fraudulent use of an ID, according to a sheriff's affidavit. On Tuesday, he remained jailed in Broward County with an immigration hold pending against him, records show.

According to the sheriff's affidavit:

The incident happened at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Sunday, when Saint Juste arrived from a trip to Haiti.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection twice examined Saint Juste and found an envelope in his possession. When officials asked him to turn over the envelope, he refused.

Saint Juste then stuffed the contents of the envelope into his mouth. Authorities subsequently found the contents were U.S. Treasury tax-return checks bearing the names of fraud victims. It was unclear whether the checks were counterfeit.

According to the affidavit, Saint Juste said he was given the checks by someone in Haiti and told to deliver them to someone else in South Florida.

The affidavit said Saint Juste "advised he was going to get 25 percent for transporting the checks."