Double brokers are a stain upon the trucking industry. I’ve said that a dozen times, but in a new twist, law enforcement targeted an individual based in Tijuana, Mexico who had been targeting drivers in the San Diego area.
Alexis Padilla faces four counts of wire fraud and a $250,000 fine, plus nearly that amount in restitution payments
Crime doesn’t pay, especially when you’re operating an operation now drawing the ire of media pundits and legal experts. Alexis Castillo Padilla was arrested in Italy and extradited back to the United States on May 27, 2022. As part of his guilty plea agreement, he will pay back $239,904 in restitution to his victims.
The statement from the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of California explains the scam Padilla ran out his Tijuana office:
“According to his plea agreement, Padilla conducted what is known as a ‘double-broker’ scheme. As a part of the scheme, Padilla stole the identity of a Spring Valley interstate carrier and agreed to make deliveries using the company’s stolen identity.
“Then, rather than delivering the loads, Padilla posed as a shipper and re-brokered the same loads to other carriers that delivered the freight. Padilla then collected the payments for the completed deliveries but did not pay the carriers that actually delivered the loads and were unaware that Padilla was running a double-broker scheme. Padilla orchestrated most of the scheme from Tijuana, Mexico.”
Assistant U. S. Attorney Joseph Green
As we know, double brokering is rampant across the world. It harms the relationships between shippers, legitimate brokers, and carriers. Padilla’s sentencing hearing is set for December 7.
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