Chen

The government appeals from the district court’s judgment dismissing the indictment charging nine defendants with conspiracy to smuggle aliens into the United States in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 371 and 8 U.S.C. § 1324 (a)(1). The district court claimed authority to dismiss the indictment pursuant to its supervisory powers because it determined that agents of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) acted outside their statutory authority by conducting an undercover investigation in international waters. The district court exercised jurisdiction pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3231 . We have jurisdiction over the government’s timely appeal under 18 U.S.C. § 3731 , and we reverse and remand.

I

In July 1991, a confidential informant contacted the INS regarding two persons— Chong-Biao Chen and Ok Son Chen, both defendants in this case — who had asked the informant about renting a boat for the purpose of meeting a Chinese ship, the Li Munn, off the coast of California and transporting 20 Chinese persons from the Li Munn to the United States mainland. The INS then began an undercover investigation into possible violations of the immigration laws.

With INS approval, the informant…