Tag Archives: trial date set

Carlos Rafael and smuggling accomplice Antonio M. Freitas trial date set to begin on Jan. 9, 2017

carlos rafaelThe two defendants’ cases have progressed side by side so far. Neither appeared in U.S. District Court on Wednesday in Boston, where District Court Judge William G. Young scheduled their trial to begin on Jan. 9, 2017, in a brief status conference. Neither a federal prosecutor nor lawyers for Rafael and Freitas commented afterward. Rafael, a 64-year-old Dartmouth resident who owns one of the largest commercial fishing operations in the U.S., including scores of New Bedford-based vessels, faces 27 counts on federal charges including conspiracy, false entries and bulk cash smuggling, according to the indictment filed last month. Freitas is a 46-year-old Taunton resident and Bristol County Sheriff’s Office deputy, suspended without pay. He faces two federal counts, one for bulk cash smuggling and one for international structuring. Read the rest here 20:37