Pubdate: Sat, 26 Jan 2008
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2008 The Vancouver Sun
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Chad Skelton
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/corrupt.htm (Corruption - United States)

PROSTITUTE SMUGGLED DRUGS BY BRIBING BORDER GUARD WITH SEX

When Vancouver prostitute Sandra Maas wanted to smuggle some 
marijuana or oxycodone into the U.S., all she had to do was call her 
friend, U.S. border guard Desmone Bastian, to see what lane he was working at.

Then, as she approached his post at the Peace Arch crossing, she'd 
flash Bastian a bit of cleavage, or hike up her skirt, and he'd wave 
her through.

They'd sometimes meet up later for sex.

On Thursday, a jury in Seattle convicted Bastian, a U.S. citizen who 
lives in Surrey with his wife and one child, of accepting a bribe -- 
sex -- from Maas in exchange for giving her a free pass at the border.

Bastian was also charged with conspiring with Maas to smuggle drugs 
into the U.S., but the jury acquitted him of aiding in the 
importation of the drugs and was deadlocked on the other counts.

According to U.S. prosecutors, Bastian first contacted Maas at her 
Vancouver escort service sometime in 2001 or 2002.

At the beginning, Bastian paid Maas for sex. But he later told her 
about his job, at one point wearing his uniform to her brothel.

And beginning in late 2004, he received free sex in exchange for 
letting her cross the border.

Maas and Bastian's deal fell apart on April 14, 2006, when Maas was 
stopped at the border by another guard while Bastian was posted to 
the truck crossing.

It was then that U.S. inspectors discovered nearly 3,000 
vacuum-sealed oxycodone pills hidden in Maas's bra and panties.

Maas was charged with importing narcotics but, in a plea bargain with 
the U.S. government, agreed to testify against Bastian in exchange 
for a two-year sentence.

By that point, U.S. investigators were already beginning to suspect 
Bastian was somehow involved in the scheme.

"Law enforcement, at the time of her arrest, started looking at her 
crossings and it became apparent she crossed repeatedly in Mr. 
Bastian's lane," said Emily Langlie, a spokeswoman with the U.S. 
attorney's office in Seattle.

U.S. investigators were also helped out by Canadian police, who 
caught Maas on a wiretap telling her alleged drug supplier, Henry 
Omidi, she had a contact at the border who told her her name hadn't 
been flagged.

"He made me feel a lot better today and he'll be calling me later 
tonight, so I just wanted to pass that on," Maas is heard saying on 
the recording.

(Omidi pleaded guilty late last year to being involved in a 
gun-smuggling ring and received a three-year prison sentence.)

Sgt. Bill Whalen of the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit 
confirmed Friday that his unit was involved in the investigation of 
Maas but refused to provide any further details because the case is 
still before the courts.

On Oct. 25, 2006, at the end of his shift, Bastian was arrested and 
charged with accepting a bribe and importing drugs.

According to an Associated Press report, Bastian admitted in court 
last week that he twice paid Maas $150 for sex, but denied that he 
knew she was trafficking drugs or gave her a free pass at the border.

"I've never failed to perform my duties," Bastian said. "I did my job 
with a lot of integrity, and a lot of pride."

Bastian also testified that he only told Maas what lane he was 
working in at the border because he wanted to see her.

However, according to AP, Maas told a very different story, 
testifying she would usually come through the border "in something 
revealing," hiking up her skirt or baring her cleavage for Bastian.

At times, she said, she had duffel bags full of marijuana stacked up 
beside her and on her car's back seat.

"He didn't even ask for my identification," Maas told the jury, 
according to AP, describing their deal as "mutually pleasurable."

She also said that on at least two occasions she met up with Bastian 
at a gas station near the border for sexual encounters after making 
her drug runs.

Bastian is scheduled to be sentenced on April 7.

Langlie said Bastian faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

However, Bastian's lawyer, Michael Nance, told AP that his client 
"dodged a major bullet" by avoiding conviction on the drug charges 
and will likely receive a sentence of 15 to 33 months.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom