No vice seen in Don Johnson case (off the hook for big bucks in his trunk)

Houston Chronicle ^ | 5.7.03

[mhking]

COLOGNE, Germany -- German authorities won't take action against Don Johnson, star of television shows Miami Vice and Nash Bridges, who was stopped last year by German customs officers as he was traveling in a car carrying credit notes and other securities worth as much as $8 billion.

The documents, meant to serve as a security for a business deal, belonged to one of Johnson's fellow passengers and not to Johnson, Leonhard Bierl, spokesman for Germany's Customs Crime Office in Cologne, said Tuesday.

"The whole thing is off the burner as far as we're concerned," Bierl said. "We're very sorry that the story was leaked to the media and caused so much mishap for Mr. Johnson."

The car in which Johnson, 53, was traveling with two people was searched in a routine check at the Bietingen border post as it entered Germany from Switzerland on Nov. 6. German officials informed U.S. tax and customs authorities about the discovery of the papers.

[mhking]

"How would you like a career in SOUTHERN law enforcement?"

"Hold muh beer 'n watch this!" PING....

If you want on or off this list, please let me know!

[mikegi]

In unrelated news, Leonhard Bierl, spokesman for Germany's Customs Crime Office in Cologne, said Tuesday that he is resigning to be with his family at their new mansion in Monaco. Don Johnson, star of television shows Miami Vice and Nash Bridges, said Tuesday that he appreciated Mr. Bierl's help getting this matter off the burner. "The earlier reports of $8 billion were incorrect. Mr. Bierl helped me total up the documents and it only came to $7.8 billion. My bad!"

[The Duke]

Interesting, isn't it, that Saddam required three semis to cart off a measly $1 billion?

[TruthNtegrity]

Hussein's Billion was in $100 notes - and weighed 20,000 pounds which is why it took 3 dump trucks.

I suspect that this money was in much larger denominations - like $1000 bills? You think?

And I have no idea how large the denomination goes when it gets to Euros - but there's another possibility.

[TruthNtegrity]

Dummy! That's me talking to me. The article clearly states "and other securities". Well, that could be a million dollar bond, or a stock certificate worth several million dollars. So, it didn't have to be in CURRENCY - it was in other instruments representing Dollars!

[cryptical]

I can recall in the 80's working for a place that did stock & bond transfers. Fed-Ex would only take (IIRC) $10 million face value per package, so sometimes we'd have to split a certificate into $10 million increments, and send a dozen or so packages, one certificate in each.

[realpatriot71]

Gotta love it - traveling anywhere with more than a few hundred bucks cash, and you must be into "something" - in the US for sure, and it also appears to be the case in Germany as well.

[zeugma]

Would you say that having $8 billion dollars in securities travel in the manner noted in the article is unusual? $8B is a lot of money no matter what circles you run in unless you're FedGov.

[cryptical]

$8 Billion is still a lot of money to anyone but a politician. My imagination doesn't extend to what kind of transaction would require the principals smuggle the funds from one country to another.

Whatever $8 Billion buys is too large to hide. Someones going to notice that there's new owners of whatever.

[DensaMensa]

}Whatever $8 Billion buys is too large to hide.

Pretty hard to eat up that much. {ggg}.