News
Release
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
April 4,
2006
DEA Public
Affairs
202-307-7977
Police
Officers and Airline Employee Arrested in Colombia
$10 Million Worth of Cocaine Smuggled Aboard
Commercial Planes; Security Operations Compromised at El Dorado Airport
Some
of the $10 million worth of cocaine seized as part of "Operation
Caso Dorado." |
(New York-NY)-John
P. Gilbride, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration's
New York Field Division and Michael J. Garcia, the United States Attorney
for the Southern District of New York, announced the arrests in Colombia
of seven defendants, including corrupt Colombian police officers and
a corrupt employee of Avianca Airlines, in connection with an indictment
charging them with smuggling more than $10 million worth of cocaine through
the El Dorado International Airport in Bogotá, Colombia, for importation
into the United States.
"Narco-terrorism
is a real threat to the security of the United States and we must never
let our guard down," said Gilbride. "This operation sends a
strong signal to traffickers worldwide that the international drug enforcement
community will continue to aggressively pursue any potential compromise
to airport security."
The arrests announced
today were the result of “Operation Caso Dorado,” a joint
investigation conducted by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration
(“DEA”) in New York and Bogotá, Colombia, and the
United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New
York with the cooperation of the United States Department of Homeland
Security, Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”)
and Colombian and Mexican law enforcement authorities.
More than ever, the
public must be able to rely on the integrity of the law enforcement and
airline personnel responsible for the safety of airline passengers and
shipments,” stated Mr. Garcia. “When such officials allow
smuggling of contraband destined for the United States, they violate
our criminal laws and endanger our national security, and they will face
justice in an American courtroom."
The indictment charges
LEONIDAS MOLINA-TRIANA, a/k/a “Sofoco,” a/k/a “Don
Oscar,” a former Major in the Colombian National Police (“CNP”),
JUAN CARLOS CARDONA, a/k/a “El Flaco,” a/k/a “Gamin,” a
former CNP Captain, JAIME ENRIQUE ROMERO-PADILLA, a/k/a “Yimmy,” a
former CNP Lieutenant, JORGE PLAZAS-SILVA, a/k/a “El Flaco,” an
active CNP patrolman, HUMBERTO AVILA, an active CNP patrolmen, and MARIA
CHRISTINA MARIN-CASTRO, an employee of Avianca Airlines, along with HENRY
FERRO-VARON, a/k/a “El Mono” with conspiracy to distribute
cocaine shipments through El Dorado Airport en route to the United States.
According to the indictment,
from approximately August 2005 until December 2005, representatives of
Colombia’s notorious Norte Valle Cartel, including former high-ranking
Colombian police officials such as MOLINA-TRIANA, CARDONA and ROMERO-PADILLA,
recruited active members of the Colombian police responsible for El Dorado
Airport security operations, as well as Avianca Airlines employees at
El Dorado Airport’s cargo facility, to permit the smuggling of
cocaine from Colombia to Mexico and ultimately into the United States.
The indictment alleges
that between October 14 and 17, 2005, corrupt Colombian police officials
and Avianca Airlines employees permitted 409 kilograms of cocaine, worth
more than $10 million on the streets of New York City, to pass through
security at the Avianca Airlines cargo facility at El Dorado Airport
without detection. MARIN-CASTRO, an employee of Avianca Airlines at El
Dorado Airport, knowingly processed the false paperwork to move the cocaine
through the Avianca Airlines cargo facility en route to Mexico City and
the United States, it was charged.
According to the indictment,
PLAZAS-SILVA and AVILA, active CNP patrolmen stationed at El Dorado Airport,
passed the cocaine through security and guarded the shipment of drugs
for three days in the Avianca cargo facility until the drugs were sent
to Mexico City. As set forth in the indictment, on October 17, 2005,
the 409 kilograms of cocaine were transported aboard an Avianca flight
to Mexico City, Mexico, where they were seized by Mexican law enforcement
personnel.
An additional amount
of approximately 552 kilograms of cocaine worth more than $10 million
dollars was seized yesterday by Colombian authorities during the execution
of a search warrant from a warehouse used by this organization.
If convicted, the
defendants face a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory
minimum sentence of 10 years in prison. The indictment also seeks forfeiture
from the defendants in the amount of $10 million, based on their roles
in conspiring to import cocaine into the United States. The defendants
are being held in Colombia pending submission of formal extradition requests
by the United States.
The prosecution is
being handled by the International Narcotics Trafficking Unit of the
United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New
York. Marc P. Berger and Kevin R. Puvalowski are in charge of the prosecution.
The charges contained
in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed
innocent unless and until proven guilty. |