United States v. Nikolay Tantchev

MANION, Circuit Judge.

After a six-day trial involving twenty-nine witnesses, a federal jury convicted Nikolay Tantchev of exporting and attempting to export stolen cars, submitting false documents to customs officials, and structuring financial transactions to avoid federal reporting requirements. That same jury acquitted Tantchev's co-defendant, Batmagnai Chogsom, of charges related to the stolen cars and false documents, but it convicted Chogsom of making a false statement to an IRS agent. The district court sentenced Tantchev to 40 months' imprisonment and Chogsom to 3 years' probation.

Both…