SEATTLE — A federal jury convicted a former immigration inspector Thursday of accepting sex from a Canadian prostitute in exchange for giving her a free pass when she crossed the border.
But the border guard, Desmone Bastian, 31, “dodged a major bullet” by avoiding conviction on related drug and conspiracy charges that could have brought a minimum 10 years in prison, his lawyer said after the verdict. The jury acquitted him of aiding and abetting the importation of marijuana, and deadlocked on three other counts.
Bastian, a U.S. citizen who lives in Surrey, B.C., worked as a U.S. immigration inspector in Blaine for eight years before being arrested in late 2006, after his connection with the prostitute, Sandra Maas, became clear. Prosecutors alleged he knew Maas was importing marijuana, but never referred her for a secondary inspection.
“We are pleased that the jury found Mr. Bastian guilty of the criminal conduct at the heart of this case,” U.S. Attorney Jeffrey Sullivan said. “The integrity of our borders is too important to be compromised by the taking of illegal bribes.”
Maas, who acknowledged being a prostitute and madam, testified during the five-day trial that on several occasions, she called Bastian in advance to learn which lane he was working in at the busy border crossing. When she arrived at his booth, she’d flash her breasts at him and hike up her skirt. He wouldn’t ask any questions about the duffel bags of marijuana stacked beside her, she said, calling the arrangement “mutually pleasurable.”
Bastian’s lawyer, Michael Nance, told jurors not to buy it — if there had been bags of marijuana in plain view, and if she had flashed Bastian, other guards and security cameras would have picked up on it. Nance said Maas — who was facing more than 10 years in prison after being arrested at the border with oxycodone pills in her underwear — made up the story to win a deal of just two years in prison. Maas, who has already served her time, was never charged with trafficking the hundreds of pounds of marijuana she claimed to have imported.
On the witness stand, Bastian cried as he claimed that “marital problems” drove him into the prostitute’s arms, and that he paid her twice for sex — $150 each time. But he insisted the sexual relationship ended by 2002, that he never failed to perform his duty and that he had no idea she was running drugs.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Nicholas Brown and Susan Roe pointed to other evidence of an improper relationship, including 20 phone calls between Maas and Bastian in the weeks leading up to her arrest.
In addition, three federal agents testified that when Bastian was arrested, he confessed. Bastian insisted he did not confess, and that the agents misunderstood him. Per standard practice, the interview was not recorded.
U.S. District Judge James Robart set sentencing for April 7. Bastian faces a maximum of 15 years for taking a bribe, but because he has no criminal history, the guideline range will be far short of that, Nance said.
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