Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - United States Customs and Border Protection officers seized 53 fraudulent bank checks August 16, totaling $655,540 in value from a cargo parcel from Nigeria that was destined for Kansas.

The parcel arrived aboard a commercial passenger flight to Cargo City located near Philadelphia International Airport and was selected for an intensive examination. The bill of lading described the contents as documents; however during the examination CBP Anti-Terrorism Contraband Enforcement Team officers located an envelope stuffed with checks drawn against several banks. Phone calls to the financial institutions confirmed that the checks were indeed fraudulent. CBP officers seized the fraudulent checks in violation of 18USC545.

Passenger and cargo manifests arriving from foreign airports aboard commercial airplanes are analyzed at CBP’s National Targeting Center in Reston, Va., and by local enforcement teams at individual ports of entry. Officers then target passengers and parcels that require more intensive scrutiny. Using tactical targeting data, CBP A-TCET officers in the Port of Philadelphia have seized fraudulent bank checks, traveler’s checks and money orders valued at about $2,267,567 during fiscal year 2008. The fiscal year starts October 1.

During fiscal year 2007, the A-TCET officers seized fraudulent monetary instruments valued at $3,817,007.

“This brazen attempt to smuggle fraudulent monetary instruments into the United States is one of the largest we’ve seen in quite some time, but it too failed,” said Allan Martocci, Philadelphia CBP area port director. “There is no doubt that these checks, had they reached their destination, would have cause severe financial pain and hardship to U.S. citizens and American businesses. This was a real good catch.”

Contraband Enforcement Teams were created around the nation in the 1970’s in the legacy-U.S. Customs Service. CET inspectors specialized in finding contraband hidden in cargo, containers, and other conveyances by targeting and inspecting incoming foreign merchandise. CET experienced a name change in 2003 to A-TCET to reflect its added anti-terrorism responsibilities. A-TCET officers inspect cargo arriving at airports and seaports at over 300 ports of entry nationwide.