1996
OPERATION
GLOBAL SEA
Operation Global
Sea was the first time that federal authorities immobilized all levels
of a major Nigeria-based trafficking distribution organization, from its
primary U.S. distributor, to its major source in Bangkok, Thailand. The
18-month Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) operation
was a cooperative effort by the DEA, the U.S. Customs Service, the FBI,
and law enforcement authorities in Thailand, Great Britain, France, Switzerland,
Mexico, and the Netherlands.
Launched
in 1995, Global Sea ultimately resulted in the arrest of 24 defendants,
including the director of the Chicago distribution cell and Musiliu Balogun,
the Bangkok-based leader of the organization. These arrests took place
in Bangkok, Chicago, New York City, Detroit, and Pakistan. Global Sea
agents seized $200,000 and 2 kilograms of heroin with an average purity
of 80 percent. In addition, as a direct result of Global Sea, approximately
72 kilograms of heroin were seized in France, Mexico, and the Netherlands.
By the time Global
Sea officially ended in 1996, it had effectively dismantled a major Nigeria-based
drug trafficking network that smuggled $26 million worth of high-purity
Southeast Asian heroin from Bangkok to Chicago. Between 1993 and 1996,
the group smuggled several hundred kilograms of heroin from Thailand via
Europe, Guatemala, and Mexico. The organization was highly structured
and well-organized, with a sophisticated intelligence and courier network.
Another unique aspect
of this investigation was that it revealed the prominent role that women
play in Nigeria-based trafficking organizations. Fifteen of the defendants
were women, and women directed the distribution cell in Chicago and one
of the three sources of supply in Bangkok.
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