United States v. Real Property, Titled in the Names of Godfrey Soon Bong Kang & Lee

Claimant Godfrey Soon Bong Kang (“Kang”) appeals the jury verdict and judgment of forfeiture of his one acre parcel of real property. The basis for the forfeiture was the use of the property to conduct an illegal gambling business in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1955 . Kang challenges the forfeiture as barred by the statute of limitations, as premised on insufficient probable cause, and as a violation of the Excessive Fines *949 Clause of the Eighth Amendment. We find no merit in any of Kang’s claims, and we affirm.

I. The Statute of Limitations Does Not Bar This Forfeiture

The statute of limitations relevant to these forfeiture proceedings is five years:

19 U.S.C. § 1621 (made applicable to forfeiture proceedings by 18 U.S.C. § 1955 (d)). In its forfeiture complaint, filed in 1993, the government alleged that gambling occurred on Kang’s property as early as 1986. Kang argues, therefore, that the government “discovered” the offense in 1986. We disagree.

In 1986, Kang’s property was the subject of investigation by state authorities; the “alleged offense” for purposes of this forfeiture, however, is a violation of federal law. The question, therefore, is whether the federal…