Florida Couple Pleads Guilty to Evading $42M in Duties on Imported Chinese Plywood

Noel Quintana and Kelsy Hernandez Quintana, a Florida couple, pleaded guilty on Oct. 19 to conspiring to skirt customs duties on their plywood imports, DOJ announced. Noel also pleaded guilty to one count each of smuggling and violating the Lacey Act, while Kelsey also pleaded guilty to two counts of violating the Lacey Act. In all, the Quintanas' scheme allowed them to evade around $42 million in duties, DOJ said.

They face up to $42 million in forfeitures, DOJ said, adding that the plywood’s market value was between $25 million and $65 million. Noel Quintana faces a combined maximum of 30 years in prison across all the counts against him and $750,000 in penalties. Kelsy Quintana faces up to 15 years in prison and $750,000 in fines.

From 2016 to 2020, the Quintanas used seven companies that they incorporated in the U.S. to import hundreds of plywood shipments. In violation of customs laws, the couple also incorporated a financial shell company that they used to accept payments from purchasers of the imports, all of which came from China.

In April 2017, the pair evaded duties on the hardwood plywood by "falsely declaring" the products to be from a different country or to be "made with a species of wood not subject to duties." This conduct also violated the Lacey Act, which has a requirement to file a declaration containing the subject plant's scientific name and country of origin.

The couple falsified import declarations, telling customs officials that the goods were from Russia, even though the goods were made in China and shipped to Florida via the Panama Canal. After a shipment was stopped in Panama, the Quintanas shipped Chinese-made hardwood plywood to Malaysia, then transshipped the products to new containers destined for the U.S., DOJ said. After being told their conduct was illegal, the couple fled to Panama, then to Montenegro, from where they eventually were extradited to the U.S.