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2 Japanese carrying $134 bil worth of U.S. bonds detained in Italy
Japan Today ^ | Thursday 11th June, 06:18 AM JST | JapanToday

Posted on 06/10/2009 10:45:08 PM PDT by Xenophon450

ROME —

Two Japanese nationals were detained by Italian financial police last week after trying to enter Switzerland with $134 billion worth of undeclared U.S. bonds, mostly Treasury bonds, an Italian daily said Wednesday. The Japanese consulate general in Milan confirmed that the detention had taken place and said it was trying to confirm with Italian authorities whether the two were indeed Japanese nationals and their identities.

According to the report in il Giornale, two unidentified Japanese in their 50s concealed the bonds, including 249 U.S. Treasury bonds each worth $500 million, in a suitcase with a false bottom that was searched by the Italian authorities June 3 when they were in Chiasso, at the border with Switzerland, about 50 kilometers north of Milan. The daily did not say on what charges they have been detained, but the two may have been detained on suspicion of attempting to take a large amount of securities out of Italy without declaring it because the paper said they had not declared the bonds.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; Japan
KEYWORDS: 200906; 20090603; bearerbonds; bonds; counterfeit; fakebonds; italy; japan; japanese; mafia; meyerhardt; milan; milancell; stephenmeyerhardt; switzerland; tbills; tm; treasurybonds; undeclaredbonds; undeclaredusbonds; usbonds; ustreasurybonds
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To: April Lexington

Whatever the story is, this is BIG news. Expect the media to cover the latest Hollywood blockbuster or a shooting tomorrow.


41 posted on 06/10/2009 11:08:18 PM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: SpaceBar

135 billion in bonds? Pshhhh, who won AMERICAN IDOL!!! AMIRITE?


42 posted on 06/10/2009 11:09:26 PM PDT by Xenophon450
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To: djf

Maybe they were just going to buy a loaf of bread.

Oh, that’s right, it won’t get that bad until Obama’s second term.


43 posted on 06/10/2009 11:09:27 PM PDT by cookcounty (He who controls the Language controls the Debate.)
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To: Big_Monkey
People participating in legitimate business don't have false-bottomed briefcases with $134 Billion in unregistered, untraceable monetary instruments.

Actually they do. Just look at the recent Siemens "black money" scandal.

44 posted on 06/10/2009 11:10:00 PM PDT by fso301
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To: staytrue
I have to agree. Probably China wants to dump US treasuries without causing a world wide currency crises.

People sneak bonds into Switzerland to hide them. They would have to be bearer bonds or deposited into an identity secure account. Governments simply don't sneak around depositing bonds. If they want to dump the bonds, they can either swap them for something of value (like copper) or just sell them in an orderly liquidation so as not to roil the markets. They do this every day... something wrong here...

45 posted on 06/10/2009 11:11:30 PM PDT by April Lexington (Study the constitution so you know what they are taking away!)
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To: Xenophon450

Those bast&rds. I sent them out for change a week ago.........


46 posted on 06/10/2009 11:11:31 PM PDT by Cyman
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To: staytrue
"China wants to dump US treasuries without causing a world wide currency crises. "

That is the most likely scenario that I can imagine. This is a big story.

47 posted on 06/10/2009 11:11:52 PM PDT by Big_Monkey
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To: fso301
Actually they do. Just look at the recent Siemens "black money" scandal.

Agreed. But not $134 Billion!

48 posted on 06/10/2009 11:12:24 PM PDT by April Lexington (Study the constitution so you know what they are taking away!)
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To: TheWasteLand

Sounds like a cross between the Italian Job and Die Hard I?


49 posted on 06/10/2009 11:13:04 PM PDT by mike70
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To: fso301
"Actually they do. Just look at the recent Siemens "black money" scandal."

This would be a 100x bigger, at least. But, as someone else pointed out, this has Chicoms written all over it.

50 posted on 06/10/2009 11:13:22 PM PDT by Big_Monkey
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To: fso301

Soros again?


51 posted on 06/10/2009 11:13:38 PM PDT by cookcounty (He who controls the Language controls the Debate.)
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To: djf
No individuals could do this. So the only answer is that they are working for the Japanese government or one of the large Japanese banks.

Why would the Japanese government or a bank need to smuggle bonds? Couldn't these men have been hired by a drug cartel, for example?

Nonetheless, this is a fascinating story. There just aren't many entities around with that kind of loot. (assuming the $134B figure is accurate)

52 posted on 06/10/2009 11:13:41 PM PDT by Ken H
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To: Xenophon450

Don Wonson


53 posted on 06/10/2009 11:13:50 PM PDT by Gene Eric
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To: Big_Monkey
Wait... this could be a hedge fund manager ripping off its investors and doing a Madoff with the dough. Its possible. Crazy but possible.
54 posted on 06/10/2009 11:14:25 PM PDT by April Lexington (Study the constitution so you know what they are taking away!)
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To: mike70

If the bonds are real. They could be fake I suppose - although would someone think they could get away with faking $134 billion in bonds? Unlikely.


55 posted on 06/10/2009 11:15:03 PM PDT by TheWasteLand
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To: April Lexington
This is an astounding amount of money. Very few people have this kind of liquidity

For perspective, this is about twice the net worth of Bill Gates, and more than the amount of dollar-denominated foreign reserves held by Russia.

If these are not forgeries, this is potentially the financial story of the decade.

-ccm

56 posted on 06/10/2009 11:15:10 PM PDT by ccmay (Too much Law; not enough Order.)
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To: cookcounty
Soros doesn't have $134 billion. Nobody on the Forbes list has $134 billion in loose liquid bonds. Except hedge funds...
57 posted on 06/10/2009 11:15:32 PM PDT by April Lexington (Study the constitution so you know what they are taking away!)
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To: April Lexington

So is this Obama’s 3:30 AM phone call?


58 posted on 06/10/2009 11:15:54 PM PDT by SpaceBar
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To: April Lexington
"They do this every day... something wrong here...

Yes, they do. But, in this staggering amount. I don't know what the entire global precious metal trading value is on a monthly basis, but it sure ain't $134 billion.

As they say, this is hugh, I'm series.

59 posted on 06/10/2009 11:16:39 PM PDT by Big_Monkey
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To: TheWasteLand
If the bonds are real. They could be fake I suppose - although would someone think they could get away with faking $134 billion in bonds? Unlikely.

Swiss bankers would surely detect $134 billion in counterfeit bonds (well, maybe not UBS...)

60 posted on 06/10/2009 11:16:55 PM PDT by April Lexington (Study the constitution so you know what they are taking away!)
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