In United States v. Cobena Duenas, No. 17-10509 (June 11, 2018) (Marcus, Ed Carnes, Ebel), the Court affirmed the defendant's counterfeit currency convictions.
On appeal, the sole issue was whether there was sufficient evidence to establish that the defendant knew that the transaction involved counterfeit currency. Viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the government, the Court found the evidence sufficient. The Court emphasized that the defendant had substantial contacts with the organizer of the transaction and thus had ample opportunity to discover the object of the transaction; the defendant knew that the transaction was unlawful in nature; the defendant was instrumental to the success of the transaction, since he was responsible for the exchange; and, under the "prudent smuggler" doctrine, a jury could infer that the organizer would not have entrusted the defendant to close a deal for over $600,000 in counterfeit currency without telling him the details. The Court distinguished five of its earlier sufficiency cases upon which the defendant relied, emphasizing again that he played a critical role in the actual exchange (as opposed to being merely present), had substantial contact and conversations with the organizer of the transaction, and was vested with substantial trust by the organizer. Because the defendant was not a mere bystander or peripheral player, the Court found that the evidence was sufficient.
