Philippine Banker Tells Marcos Trial of His ‘Satchel Man’ Role
The former vice president of the Philippine National Bank in New York who delivered bundles of cash to Imelda Marcos there said today that he once flew to Korea as “a satchel man” with $100,000 in cash for the Philippines first lady.
Oscar Carino, 60, said Marcos took $14,000 of it and handed it out to generals’ wives for expenses at the funeral of South Korean President Park Chung Hee.
As Marcos’ racketeering and fraud trial began its second week, Carino described how he flew to Seoul with the money to meet the Marcos’ funeral entourage after Park was assassinated in 1976.
“You went to Korea on the orders of Mrs. Marcos’ secretary?” defense lawyer Gerry Spence said.
“Yes, they were referring to me as a satchel man,” Carino replied.
“A bagman?” Spence asked.
“Yes, I carried it close to my legs,” Carino answered.
“Your legs?” Spence asked.
“Of course. $100,000 is a lot of money,” Carino snapped back.
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