12/17/92 Phila. Daily News 3 1992 WLNR 1367295
Philadelphia Daily News (PA) Copyright Philadelphia Newspapers Inc. 1992 December 17, 1992 Section: LOCAL
IRS RAIDS 2 JEWELRY STORES Jim Smith, Daily News Staff Writer Internal Revenue Service agents yesterday raided two shops on bustling Jewelers' Row, searching for evidence of so-called money laundering. Both businesses, Barry Sable Diamonds, at 735 Sansom St., and Balestra Jewelers Inc., next door on the corner of 8th and Sansom, had to close for a short period to accommodate the search, but reopened later. Owners Barry Sable and Nick Balestra declined to comment to a reporter. Inside their busy, brightly lit and decorated shops, glass showcases are filled with trinkets of gold and silver and precious jewels. The agents' eyes, however, focused on the firms' business records. Federal authorities declined to comment on the reason for the searches. A federal magistrate issued search warrants based on affidavits contending there was probable cause to suspect that evidence of money laudering was being concealed in the two shops. The affidavits explaining the reason for the searches were not made part of the public record, and Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael J. Holston couldn't be reached for comment. A cop on the beat said the raiders had caused little if any inconvenience to holiday shoppers. Money laundering ordinarily involves movement of funds in excess of $10,000 from an unlawful activity to avoid federal or state reporting requirements and conceal the source of the funds. Sable recently was compelled to testify under a grant of immunity from prosecution in a case involving the notorious Junior Black Mafia drug gang.
He acknowledged that several customers had purchased expensive rings encrusted with diamonds forming the initials ''JBM'' at his shop, and returned them later to have the gold rings melted down. Law enforcement authorities believe gang members returned the rings to ensure that the rings couldn't be seized as evidence of the existence of their organization. Sable's attorney, Alan B. Epstein, also couldn't be reached for comment.