Customs officers stopped a lorry owned by Daljit Singh Jandu trying to enter the UK through Dover in February 2007.
Inside they found class A drugs including 43kg of amphetamine powder, 19kg of MDMA, and 3,000 tablets hidden in cardboard boxes and a laundry bag.
Jandu, 45, of Wesley Street, Belle Vue, was not the lorry driver, but a jury found him guilty of being knowingly concerned in the fraudulent evasion of the prohibition of controlled drugs.
He was given an 11-year sentence at the Central Criminal Court in London on Monday after a retrial.
Malcolm Bragg, UK Border Agency’s criminal and financial investigation assistant director, said: “The sentence handed down should act as a warning to those who attempt to smuggle illegal drugs into this country.
“The seizure of these drugs reflects the robust controls we have in place at the UK border, backed by dedicated criminal investigation teams who are all vital in bringing these criminals to justice.
“Drug use destroys not only the lives of individual users, but also their families and the wider community.”
The drugs were picked up in the Netherlands and the lorry was stopped as it tried to enter Dover’s eastern docks on February 16, 2007.
Jandu was arrested on suspicion of drug smuggling on February 26, 2007.
He was originally jailed for 18 years at Canterbury Crown Court in 2008.
Jandu won the right to challenge the conviction in London’s Appeal Court in June 2009
HAULIER found guilty of a £1.1m drug smuggling plot has been jailed for 11 years.
Detectives today revealed how they smashed a £350million cocaine smuggling plot - after spotting a receipt in a waste paper basket.
The find led to the unravelling of an international drug trafficking ring with links to the Albanian mafia and a £10million money-laundering racket.
A tonne of high grade cocaine bound for London was recovered when Scotland Yard detectives and the Spanish navy stopped a ship on the high seas.
The former Canadian coastguard vessel was identified after a £100,000 receipt for ship repairs was found in a waste bin during a drugs raid in Hillingdon in 2009.
Two members of the drugs ring were jailed at Kingston crown court yesterday. Anthony Briggs, 55, was given 12 months for money laundering, possession of a class A drug and possession of CS gas. Rayner Jane Rothery, 46, also received 12 months after admitting money laundering and conspiracy to pervert the court of justice.
The case comes after details were revealed yesterday of a haul of £300million of cocaine found in a pleasure boat in Southampton docks.
Scotland Yard said 14 people in Britain have now been jailed for a total of 77 years in connection with the plot. Spanish authorities arrested 10 people who are all awaiting trial in Spain.
Detectives unpicked an international network stretching from London to Spain, Albania, the Caribbean and Colombia
Four Long Island men have been arrested for their role in what prosecutors call "one of the largest cocaine smuggling operations" in New York
.
They hid the drugs and cash in secret compartments built into several cars, according to Suffolk County District Attorney Thomas Spota.
The cars were then loaded onto truck transports, which moved the vehicles back and forth between California to Long Island.
"That's pretty ingenious, a good operation," added Spota.
Suffolk police ended the cloak and dagger operation last month, seizing 32 kilos of cocaine that had just arrived in two vehicles at a Deer Park motorcycle shop.
More than eight hundred thousand dollars in cash were recovered later, investigators said.
Undercover officers and wiretaps had been used in the eight month investigation, investigators added.
The drug smuggling operation had continued for at least five years, Spota said, with the ring distributing millions of dollars in cocaine from Mexico.
Prosecutors identified the local "kingpin" as Robert Perticone, 30 of North Babylon.
His lawyer said he is innocent of the charges.
"I don't believe my client is a wholesale cocaine dealer," said Perticone's lawyer, Ray Perini.
Neighbors described Perticone as a plumber who lived a lavish lifestyle, with expensive cars, an elaborate home security system and wild backyard parties.
"I just had a feeling all that wasn't coming from just plumbing," said neighbor Steve Quintana, who was so concerned, he wouldn't let his three kids play in the yard adjacent to Perticone's home.
The other suspects have been identified as Richard Occhino, 46 of North Babylon; Theodore Katsanos, 29 of Bay Shore; Jose Tejada, 33 of West Babylon. All have pleaded not guilty to felony drug charges. Those charges could be upgraded, prosecutors added.
More arrests are expected.
The alleged "California kingpin," William Wright, 33, of Los Angeles is still on the loose.
Police in Panama have seized more than half a tonne of heroin - one of the biggest ever drug hauls
Police in Panama have seized more than half a tonne of heroin - one of the biggest ever drug hauls in the country's history, officials say.
Officers found hundreds of plastic packages of the drug in a car in the remote Caribbean coastal town of Jobea.
The packages were ready to be shipped to other countries, the country's anti-drugs prosecutor said.
Gangs are increasingly using Central America to traffick drugs from South America to the US and Europe.
Announcing the heroin seizure on Monday, Javier Caraballo, Panama's anti-drugs prosecutor, said the consignment was put at 639kg.
Three people were arrested in the operation, which took place in the province of Colon at the weekend.
Mr Caraballo said another police operation near the capital, Panama City, had netted an estimated 468kg of cocaine.
So far this year, Panamanian officials have seized 22 tonnes of drugs originating in South America and destined for the US and Europe, Panamanian newspaper La Prensa reports.
The UN's latest World Drug Report says that in 2009, drugs seizures in Panama were the third largest in Latin America and the Caribbean, put at 53 tonnes.
Two convicted in $26-million Island cocaine bust
Two men arrested in connection with a $26-million cocaine bust in Port Hardy in March 2010 have been convicted of possession for the purpose of trafficking.
Scott Pedersen, 39, a commercial diver and former Port Hardy fisherman, and Mexican citizen Vincente Serrano-Hernandez, 38, are to be sentenced next Monday.
After deliberating for a full day, a sombre-looking B.C. Supreme Court jury filed into court and delivered their verdict. Three women jurors left the courtroom in tears.
During the trial, which began in May, the jury heard the two accused were on board the Huntress when it sailed from Panama to Port Hardy, transporting 1,001 kilograms of cocaine.
The cocaine was brought ashore on Shushartie Bay in 37 duffel bags on March 6.
The Crown argued that the quality and value of the cocaine clearly indicated it was for drug trafficking, not for personal consumption.
The Crown also described the unusual circumstances surrounding the Huntress when it was seen by a patrol plane on a routine surveillance flight March 5 at Cape Scott. It was running without lights and travelling along the unsheltered west coast of Vancouver Island.
When the crew called the sailboat on the marine channel, the man who responded to a hail could not find the vessel's call sign or registration papers. The boat did not respond to a subsequent hail asking when it would arrive in Port Hardy.
Three hours later, using infrared radar, the surveillance crew captured a rendezvous between the Huntress and a smaller boat, which made two to four trips between the beach and the sailboat.
Defence lawyers Robert Mulligan and Jeremy Mills told jurors the Crown's evidence in identifying the sailboat was not good enough.
Times were good for Carlsbad pilot John Ward as he smuggled cocaine across the U.S. for Mexico's Sinaloa cartel.
John Charles Ward would take flight in the half-light before dawn, when he could race down the runway without headlights and ascend into the cloaking embrace of an overcast sky.
Soaring above the crowded California freeways in the single-engine aircraft, he'd relax, pour himself a whiskey and Seven and plan his hopscotch route to Pennsylvania. Inside the plane were 242 pounds of cocaine; outside, nothing but clouds.
"There are no curbs in the sky," Ward said. "There's no place for anybody to pull you over."
Flying shipments for the Sinaloa drug cartel was Ward's best gig in years. No street dealing, packaging or other grubby chores required. He delivered cocaine to a distributor in Pennsylvania and returned with duffel bags stuffed with up to $2.8 million, keeping a few 6-inch stacks of cash for himself.
Taking off from Riverside County's Corona Municipal Airport at dawn, Ward could be back the next day, feeding twenties and hundreds into the counting machine at his home in Carlsbad.
Still, he had some nagging concerns. The Mexican distributors in Pennsylvania were trying to cut costs by hiring immigrant truckers to haul drugs from Southern California. And U.S. agents were keeping a close watch on traffickers in the historic towns of Lancaster County, Pa., a distribution hub.
Ward was an expert at covering his tracks. He usually stayed at a cottage-style motel just off the runway at Smoketown Airport, the self-described "Gateway to Pennsylvania's Amish Country." After midnight he donned black clothing and lugged cocaine-filled gym bags from the plane to his room. He avoided people, paid cash for most purchases and, if anybody asked, said he was an aircraft broker.
"The money never stopped. The product never stopped," he said. "Everything was moving continuously."
Veteran of the trade
By the time President Nixon declared the "war on drugs" in 1971, Ward had been transporting dope to California for years. He grew weed at a farm he owned in Missouri and shipped it by truck. A few years later, responding to demand for better pot, he partnered with marijuana farmers in Mexican villages and hired pilots -- some of them Vietnam War veterans -- to fly the drugs across the border.
But they were unreliable prima donnas. So he decided to get a pilot's license. He went to Hawaii to train in crosswinds, headwinds and on island hops.
"I said to myself: 'I'm going to be the best smuggler there is. I'm going to be the one without an attitude,' " Ward said.
Over three decades, he piloted more than 50 planes, from cramped Beechcraft Musketeer three-seaters to an Aero Commander 500 that he'd jam with 1,500 pounds of marijuana. In the 1970s and '80s, he made short trips to northern Mexico, landing on runways marked by burning tires, and made long flights through the Sierra Madre, where joyous farmers rode alongside his plane on horseback, shooting pistols into the air. I said to myself: ‘I’m going to be the best smuggler there is. I’m going to be the one without an attitude.’”
Ward was scrappy and resourceful, an adrenaline junkie with a taste for the finer things. His smuggling paid for a desert estate, a sailboat named Romancing and Dom Perignon-fueled parties. He relished the challenges of aerial smuggling and devised ingenious ways to avoid detection.
He'd fly across the border skimming treetops to evade radar. He'd land in the desert, at improvised airstrips where his crews laid generator-powered runway lights. For engine troubles, he packed a tool bag with fuses and wrenches. For human problems, he tucked a 9-millimeter handgun in his waistband.
One step ahead
Federal authorities, who had been aware of Ward's air smuggling since 1975, chased him in the desert sky, bugged his phones and planted tracking devices on his aircraft, some of which he found and kept behind his bar at home to show off to his drinking buddies.
Customs make £5.8m drug haul in frozen chips
A man has been accused of smuggling £5.8 million-worth of heroin, cocaine and cannabis in bags of frozen chips.
Otto Landman, from Eesveen in the Netherlands, appeared at Dover Magistrates' Court today.
He denied attempting to smuggle the drugs into the UK and was remanded in custody.
Officers stopped a Dutch registered lorry on June 30 at the inward freight controls of Dover's Eastern Docks.
When they searched the vehicle and its load of frozen chips, they found approximately 100 kilos of heroin, 15 kilos of cocaine and 250 kilos of cannabis.
The combined estimated street value of the drugs is estimated to be £5.8 million.
Enquiries by UK Border Agency investigators are continuing.
Carole Upshall, UK Border Agency Director for the south coast ports, said: "This is an excellent example of how UK Border Agency officers work tirelessly to detect and prevent drugs from being smuggled into the UK.
"We are determined to crack down on this terrible trade which can have such a destructive impact on the lives of so many.
one tonne of cocaine and 160 kg of hashish have been seized in an international police operation led by the Spanish Civil Guard and coordinated by Europol.
one tonne of cocaine and 160 kg of hashish have been seized in an international police operation led by the Spanish Civil Guard and coordinated by Europol. The huge consignment of cocaine was diluted in 13 tonnes of palm oil that had been shipped from Colombia, via Antwerp in Belgium, before being finally seized in Albania.
In total, 22 members of an international criminal drugs network, some of them key "head" figures, have been arrested under this operation.
To enable the successful outcome of Operation Salonica, the Spanish authorities together with Europol worked with law enforcement authorities in seven countries: Albania, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Serbia. The operation has resulted in the dismantling of a criminal organisation made up of Spanish, Moroccan and Albanian citizens who were importing and distributing large consignments of Colombian cocaine and Moroccan hashish in Europe.
The investigation started in October 2010 when the Judicial Police Task Force of the Spanish Civil Guard of Tarragona learned of a criminal group dealing drugs on an international level. As a result of investigations, it was confirmed that the organisation had a hierarchical structure with the head leading, directing and coordinating several branches dealing in various narcotics. One of the branches was in charge of cultivating cannabis, another one dealt with the supply of hashish from different sources. Furthermore, the network worked with a drugs cartel to obtain cocaine on a large scale and had an infrastructure in several European countries for distributing the drugs.
At the beginning of the investigation in October 2010, 1 kg of cocaine and 29 kg of cannabis were seized, and the branch specialised in cultivating and distributing cannabis was identified and dismantled. Several cannabis greenhouses were also dismantled and six members of the organisation were arrested.
The organisation was subsequently found to be importing large amounts of Colombian cocaine into Europe, mainly via the Belgian port of Antwerp, by concealing the drugs in shipping containers.
During one of several meetings of the network members in Spain, which were being monitored by the Civil Guard, the leaders of the Spanish and Colombian organisations were witnessed completing the transport of cocaine concealed in a container allegedly loaded with palm oil. The container would be travelling from Colombia to Antwerp in Belgium, where the final details of the transaction would be arranged.
The Civil Guard of Tarragona, coordinated by Europol, supervised a comprehensive international monitoring operation to follow the truck through Europe and finally to Albania, where the drugs were intercepted. The criminal group in Albania, in charge of oil processing to extract the diluted cocaine, has also been dismantled.
Among the criminal activities carried out by the members of this organised crime group was the sending of consignments of hashish from Spain to Italy and the Netherlands by means of commercial road transport. Consignments were concealed in the cabs of trucks, establishing a consistent flow which supplied 2-3 bales at a time.
In March 2011, police arrested two professional truck drivers, who were members of the network, as well as seizing 67 and 99.5 kg of hashish. The result of these operations was the dismantling of another branch of the organisation, who provided the required logistics to move the consignments of hashish.
As well as providing key operational analysis, Europol played a significant role in coordinating the operation and facilitating the controlled delivery.
"This successful cooperation between the Spanish authorities and Europol has delivered a great blow to a major international criminal syndicate," said Rob Wainwright, Director of Europol. "The sophisticated methods of concealment and transportation used by these criminal networks, and the global nature of their activities, underlines the importance of effective police cooperation through Europol's unique capabilities."
Security forces in Colombia have seized a large shipment of cocaine bound for Mexico in the port city of Cartagena,
Security forces in Colombia have seized a large shipment of cocaine bound for Mexico in the port city of Cartagena, authorities said on Monday.
The Colombian Navy said the shipment of about 12 tons of cocaine was found hidden in containers loaded with a type of brown sugar known as panela and was discovered with the help of sniffer dogs.
No suspects were detained in connection with the seizure of the narcotics shipment, which incidentally is the largest of its kind in Colombia in recent years.
The Navy said the shipment, which originated in the Valle del Cauca region in south-west Colombia, was destined for the Mexican state of Veracruz on the Gulf coast.
Valle del Cauca region is considered to be stronghold of one of the country's most powerful drug gangs, the Rastrojos. The seized shipment is believed to belong to the Rastrojos gang.
The main drug gangs operating in the region are mostly made up of members of former right-wing paramilitaries. They are now said to have taken over control of the drug trade from the once powerful drug cartels and Leftist rebel groups.
Monday's seizure comes just weeks after the Colombian authorities identified criminal gangs that are increasingly taking control of drug trade as the country's biggest security threat, and pledged more resources to capture gang members.
recently retired Mexican army general who oversaw a controversial military operation against drug-trafficking was shot dead in a Mexico City suburb
recently retired Mexican army general who oversaw a controversial military operation against drug-trafficking was shot dead in a Mexico City suburb over the weekend, the military said in a statement (link in Spanish).
A tough-talking career soldier, retired Gen. Jorge Juarez Loera was in civilian clothes and in a compact civilian vehicle Saturday when he pulled over after being struck from behind in the Ciudad Satelite area of northwest Mexico City, witnesses told reporters. After exiting his vehicle and confronting the other driver, Juarez Loera was shot and killed, reports said.
Federal investigators have taken over the case from local authorities, reports said Tuesday. One possibility being investigated is "premeditated execution," said El Universal (link in Spanish). The general was considered an expert in drug-trafficking issues and had access to sensitive intelligence, raising the possibility he was targeted in the shooting, sources told the daily Reforma.
Juarez Loera rose to third in command in the Mexican military, and left his most recent post upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 65 earlier this month.
Near the end of his 48 years of service in the Mexican armed forces, Juarez Loera oversaw Joint Operation Chihuahua (previously known as Joint Operation Juarez), the military-led campaign against drug gangs in the Mexican border state where violence-ravaged Ciudad Juarez is located. Homicide and human rights abuse claims against the Mexican military skyrocketed in Ciudad Juarez after President Felipe Calderon dispatched the army to combat the cartels in the region in late 2006.
Juarez Loera sometimes courted controversy in public remarks (link in Spanish). He once rebuffed critics of rising death tolls tied to the government's military-led campaign by saying that homicide victims should not be described as "one more citizen dead" but rather "one more delinquent dead."
Responding to complaints of heavy-handedness in the Chihuahua operation, Juarez Loera once boasted, "Mi orden de cateo es el marro," or "My warrant is the sledgehammer."
Anquan Clark, an alleged member of a crack-cocaine ring, arrested by ICE agents in Irvington
Federal agents rousted 14 gang members from their homes early Tuesday morning along with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents; New Jersey State Police; Irvington Police Department and Homeland Security Investigators after federal charges were unsealed accusing the individuals of distributing crack throughout the Irvington area, said U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman.
Two suspects named in the federal complaint remain at large, Bradney "Ice" Manasse, 28, of West Orange and Timothy Piercin, 32, of East Orange. Another man, Chenete Philemon, arrested April 9, is also named in the complaint. He remains in State custody pending a transfer to face the federal charge.
Prosecutors say from February 2010 through April 2011, confidential law enforcement sources made numerous purchases of crack cocaine from the defendants and police witnessed many.
Agents intercepted phone calls made by Mark Manasse to other defendants where details of drug transactions were discussed. These calls, said Fishman, demonstrated the narcotics consortium's efforts to manufacture and distribute crack cocaine, including dialogue about patron satisfaction, the tempo of sales, and the quality of the drugs. The callers even had code words to describe the narcotics such as “buzz,” and “white candy."
In addition to the drug offenses, Mark Manasse allegedly ordered the executions of two people in an effort to maintain control of the drug trafficking organization. Police overheard discussions about the attempted murders during telephone conversations during January and April 2011. The officers were able to impede the murders after identifying the intended targets.
Fishman stated the investigation, which led to Tuesday’s mass arrests, are indicative of local law enforcement agencies resolve to eradicate drug dealers and the turbulence they bring to neighborhoods across the state.
Peter T. Edge, Special Agent in Charge of ICE HSI in New Jersey added that residents should not have to live in fear within their communities because of the violence associated with gangs and people who sell and possess illicit drugs.
“By combining our resources, intelligence and investigative expertise, we have taken yet another proactive step towards shutting down the destructive drug pipeline in New Jersey," said Edge.
Those arrested in the takedown are: Mark "M-Easy" Manasse, 26, of West Orange, N.J.; Akmad "Pop" Anderson,25, Ligunes "LB" Bonnet, 23, Anquan "GS" Clark, 19, Jovany "Rims" Clermont, 24, Donald Duterval, 22, David "Grim" Glass, 21, and Israel "Little Easy" Petiote, 22, all of
Irvington; Tafary "Birdie" Clervil, 25, of East Orange; Levelston Georges, 21, and Philemon "Butter" Pierre-Saint, 26, of Newark; and Chenete "Jumanji" Philemon, 21, of Orange.
All are charged with one count each of conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine, which carries a statutory minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison, in addition to a $10 million fine. The defendants are scheduled to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Joseph Dickson this afternoon in Newark federal court.
Gary Carroll was sentenced to three years in prison after being convicted of dealing heroin in March.
When police raided his home they found thousands of pounds in cash and five bank bags full of drugs.
Dundee Sheriff Court ruled that Carroll's income and assets in the six years prior to his conviction were the proceeds of crime.
The sheriff said he had a "criminal lifestyle" and ordered him to pay £37,310.
Following the hearing, Lesley Thomson, from the Crown Office said: "The actions of drug dealers like Gary Carroll bring untold misery to families across Scotland."
"We will continue to use the powers available to us under the proceeds of crime legislation and to work closely with law enforcement."
Three men have been jailed for a total of over 62 years for their part in smuggling £9 million worth of cocaine and eight million cigarettes into the country.
Mark Howie, 46, of Poole, Dorset, and Andrew Kinnaird, 47, of High Brooms Road, Tunbridge Wells, were each sentenced to 22 years.
They denied smuggling the drugs but were convicted.
Derek Tunstead, 41, of Eltham, who admitted both charges, was sentenced to 18-and-a-half years.
Howie and Kinnaird also denied conspiracy to cheat the revenue by evading duty on the cigarettes but were convicted, along with Lee Garton, 54, of Fair Lawn, Chestfield, Whitstable.
Garton, who did not give evidence during the eight-week trial, was jailed for four-and-a-half years.
He had previously served a 14-year sentence for armed robbery.
Gary Pucknell, 29, of Grays, Essex, was acquitted of the drug smuggling charge.
The jury could not reach a verdict on David Kelly, 66, of Lostock Gralam, Cheshire, on the drug smuggling charge and there will be a retrial on October 31.
Maidstone Crown Court heard the cocaine was smuggled into the country in a consignment of bananas bound for a supermarket.
Nearly 37 kilos of the drug was discovered in two large bags on top of containers after arriving from Ecuador at Tilbury docks in Essex.
Also smuggled into the UK on another occasion were over eight million cigarettes. The duty evaded was more than £1.2 million.
Shane Collery, prosecuting, said Howie was a successful property developer whose went bankrupt and turned to crime.
Kinnaird and Tunstead were employed in haulage but were sacked because of his involvement in theft. Pucknell worked in freight.
The cocaine smuggled was a valuable consignment, ranging from 62 per cent to 78 per cent in purity before being “cut” for distribution on the street.
It was discovered with the bananas in Luton, Bedfordshire, having been smuggled from Ecuador.
The millions of cigarettes were smuggled in June 2009 and it was intended to bring in “an awful lot more”, said Mr Collery.
They arrived in the country in containers from the United Arab Emirates.
The documentation stated the load contained children’s clothing.
Judge Jeremy Gold QC told Howie, Kinnaird and Tunstead: “All three of your are professional criminals who decided to involve yourselves in sophisticated crime for potentially huge profits.
“Your only concern was making money with no thought of the consequences to others.
“The proliferation of Class A drugs leads to misery on a scale which is not often appreciated. It increases crime, ruins people’s lives and threatens the fabric of our society.”
The judge said Howie had been a successful property developer who turned to crime “with enthusiasm” when his business failed.
He had access to substantial sums of money to finance the criminal enterprise.
All three made a deliberate and calculated decision to turn to a life of crime.
“You have to clearly understand the stakes are high and the penalties are very significant,” he said. “There has to be an element of deterrence in the sentences.”
Garton, he said, had declined to engage in the court process, failing to give evidence or an explanation in interviews.
Garton’s brother John Garton was earlier jailed for 14 days for hurling vile abuse at jurors outside the courtroom.
John Greenan, defending, said the 51-year-old painter and decorator, who admitted contempt of court, had been “wound up” by the jury’s guilty verdict returned on Thursday on his brother.
Mr Greenan said Garton, of Gipsey Road, Welling, had been surprised to see jurors return the next day for the sentencing hearing.
He had accused them of “coming to gloat” and swore at a woman juror in a nearby car park.
Judge Jeremy Gold QC told Garton: “You must understand jurors have a difficult job to do.
"They come along and give up their time and sit in judgement of people.
“It is difficult and stressful and the last thing they want is to be abused by a member of a family. It is a serious contempt of court. Abusing jurors on three occasions is simply not excusable.
“I will take a lenient view and impose 14 days imprisonment.”
Six people involved in a Brownsville drug trafficking and money laundering scheme plead guilty in a South Texas federal court.
Six people from the lower Rio Grande Valley entered their pleas in a Corpus Christi federal courtroom late last week. They were involved with smuggling large loads of cocaine to Dallas and Atlanta from Brownsville. They also received millions of dollars in drug proceeds to be smuggled into Mexico.
ICE agents raided six homes, including one in Brownsville, last month. They seized more than half a million dollars during the raid, which has been forfeited already.
Investigators say five people were involved in transporting 5 kilos of cocaine out of the Valley over the last two years. They say Arturo Gomez was the ringleader and used his auto repair shop as a front. That's where the drugs and money proceeds were received and delivered.
They say Magda Zendejas, Reyna Ceballos, Julio Gonzalez and David Alcala all helped with the drug trafficking and money laundering operation.
All five will be sentenced in august and face up to life in prison.
Prosecutors say Vanessa Weaver took $16,000 into Mexico without declaring it. She'll face as much as five years in federal prison when she gets sentenced in late June.
The U.S. Attorney's Office is trying to get the defendants to forfeit a 38-acre property in Georgia, a half million dollars in drug proceeds and 20 vehicles seized in the raid. Together, they are worth $1.5 million.
Two Philadelphia Police officers, a detective and 12 others have been arrested by the DEA on charges involving the sale of steroids.
These arrests come come on the heels of a long-term investigation by the DEA and the Philadelphia Police Department.
A 17-count indictment was unsealed on Wednesday morning. All 15 individuals have been charged with conspiracy to distribute anabolic steroids.
The indictment alleges that Keith Gidelson, a Philadelphia Police Detective, operated an anabolic steroid and human growth hormone (HGH) distribution organization in Philadelphia and throughout the United States. The indictment goes a step further to detail that Gidelson's co-conspirators, who he allegedly sold the drugs to, distributed the drugs to their own customers.
Gidelson allegedly obtained the drugs from overseas suppliers. He, and his wife, who was also named in the indictment, stored and packed steroids in their Philadelphia home.
Police Officers Joseph McIntyre and George Sambuca were also named in the indictment.
Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey spoke about the latest arrests. "It's a hard day when our own members tarnish the badge. It's also a sign that we are committed, however, to fighting for out values of honor, service and integrity for all men and women in blue who do the right thing and work every day to make Philadelphia a safer city."
If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum of ten years in prison and hefty fines.
Ignacio Alvarez Meyendorff is suspected of working for the once-powerful Colombian Norte del Valle drug cartel.
authorities in Argentina say they have detained a Colombian man they accuse of being the brains behind the submarines used to smuggle drugs to the United States.
Ignacio Alvarez Meyendorff is suspected of working for the once-powerful Colombian Norte del Valle drug cartel.
Mr Alvarez denies the allegations.
Drug traffickers are increasingly using submarines to avoid being caught by the security forces patrolling the water's surface.
Deputy Security Minister Miguel Robles said Mr Alvarez was arrested on Sunday with help from the US Drug Enforcement Administration, but news of his arrest were only made public on Wednesday.
Mr Robles accused Mr Alvarez of being in charge of the logistics behind the underwater smuggling scheme, and of perfecting the system.
He said Mr Alvarez was detained as he arrived in Buenos Aires on a flight from Tahiti.
Local media reported that he had been living in Argentina since 2005, and had resided in an exclusive area of the Puerto Madero neighbourhood.
cocaine smugglers had bought the plane with money they had laundered through one of the biggest banks in the United States: Wachovia, now part of the giant Wells Fargo.
cocaine smugglers had bought the plane with money they had laundered through one of the biggest banks in the United States: Wachovia, now part of the giant Wells Fargo.
The authorities uncovered billions of dollars in wire transfers, traveller's cheques and cash shipments through Mexican exchanges into Wachovia accounts. Wachovia was put under immediate investigation for failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering programme. Of special significance was that the period concerned began in 2004, which coincided with the first escalation of violence along the US-Mexico border that ignited the current drugs war.
Criminal proceedings were brought against Wachovia, though not against any individual, but the case never came to court. In March 2010, Wachovia settled the biggest action brought under the US bank secrecy act, through the US district court in Miami. Now that the year's "deferred prosecution" has expired, the bank is in effect in the clear. It paid federal authorities $110m in forfeiture, for allowing transactions later proved to be connected to drug smuggling, and incurred a $50m fine for failing to monitor cash used to ship 22 tons of cocaine.
More shocking, and more important, the bank was sanctioned for failing to apply the proper anti-laundering strictures to the transfer of $378.4bn – a sum equivalent to one-third of Mexico's gross national product – into dollar accounts from so-called casas de cambio (CDCs) in Mexico, currency exchange houses with which the bank did business.
"Wachovia's blatant disregard for our banking laws gave international cocaine cartels a virtual carte blanche to finance their operations," said Jeffrey Sloman, the federal prosecutor. Yet the total fine was less than 2% of the bank's $12.3bn profit for 2009. On 24 March 2010, Wells Fargo stock traded at $30.86 – up 1% on the week of the court settlement.
The conclusion to the case was only the tip of an iceberg, demonstrating the role of the "legal" banking sector in swilling hundreds of billions of dollars – the blood money from the murderous drug trade in Mexico and other places in the world – around their global operations, now bailed out by the taxpayer.
At the height of the 2008 banking crisis, Antonio Maria Costa, then head of the United Nations office on drugs and crime, said he had evidence to suggest the proceeds from drugs and crime were "the only liquid investment capital" available to banks on the brink of collapse. "Inter-bank loans were funded by money that originated from the drugs trade," he said. "There were signs that some banks were rescued that way."
Wachovia was acquired by Wells Fargo during the 2008 crash, just as Wells Fargo became a beneficiary of $25bn in taxpayers' money. Wachovia's prosecutors were clear, however, that there was no suggestion Wells Fargo had behaved improperly; it had co-operated fully with the investigation. Mexico is the US's third largest international trading partner and Wachovia was understandably interested in this volume of legitimate trade.
José Luis Marmolejo, who prosecuted those running one of the casas de cambio at the Mexican end, said: "Wachovia handled all the transfers. They never reported any as suspicious."
"As early as 2004, Wachovia understood the risk," the bank admitted in the statement of settlement with the federal government, but, "despite these warnings, Wachovia remained in the business". There is, of course, the legitimate use of CDCs as a way into the Hispanic market. In 2005 the World Bank said that Mexico was receiving $8.1bn in remittances.
During research into the Wachovia Mexican case, the Observer obtained documents previously provided to financial regulators. It emerged that the alarm that was ignored came from, among other places, London, as a result of the diligence of one of the most important whistleblowers of our time. A man who, in a series of interviews with the Observer, adds detail to the documents, laying bare the story of how Wachovia was at the centre of one of the world's biggest money-laundering operations.
Martin Woods, a Liverpudlian in his mid-40s, joined the London office of Wachovia Bank in February 2005 as a senior anti-money laundering officer. He had previously served with the Metropolitan police drug squad. As a detective he joined the money-laundering investigation team of the National Crime Squad, where he worked on the British end of the Bank of New York money-laundering scandal in the late 1990s.
Juan Ortiz-Lopez was arrested at his home in Quetzaltenango by a US and Guatemalan joint task force on Wednesday.
Guatemalan and US agents have captured Guatemala's top drug trafficker in a joint effort to prevent the Latin American country from being absorbed into Mexico's drug wars.
Considered Guatamela's most important drug smuggler, Juan Ortiz-Lopez was arrested at his home in Quetzaltenango by a US and Guatemalan joint task force on Wednesday.
He was being protected by only two bodyguards, who were arrested as well.
The 41-year-old is suspected, along with others in his gang, of exporting tons of cocaine into Mexico and the US.
Manuel Orozco, of the US-based think tank Inter-American Dialogue, says that while Ecuador has a weaker economy, drug money is easier to launder in Guatemala.
The United States signed a deal six years ago to prevent Guatemala from falling into the same pattern as neighbouring Mexico.
Throughout Mexico, drug gangs fighting for territory have killed more than 36,000 people during the past four years.
Earlier this month, US President Barack Obama pledged another 140 million euros to combat drugs in central America after visiting El Salvador.
Mexican Drug Cartels Smuggled Hundreds of Kilograms of Cocaine to Kansas City - Kansas City, Missouri News
infoZine - Mexican Drug Cartels Smuggled Hundreds of Kilograms of Cocaine to Kansas City - Kansas City, Missouri News: "Adrian Dunn, also known as “A.D.,” 37, Vincent E. Charles, also known as “Zeno” or “Z,” 42, Danny R. Moore, 54, Cheo D. Miles, 38, and Dennis Westbrook, also known as “Westcrook,” 31, all of Kansas City, Mo., were found guilty of participating in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana from January 2007 to August 2009. In addition to the drug-trafficking conspiracy, Dunn, Moore and Westbrook were each convicted of using a telephone to facilitate the distribution of cocaine and marijuana
. All of the defendants remain in federal custody pending a sentencing hearing.":Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder
Drug Bust: Canadian man arrested in Newport Beach after authorities find $19 million worth of cocaine at his home. - ktla.com
Drug Bust: Canadian man arrested in Newport Beach after authorities find $19 million worth of cocaine
at his home. - ktla.com: "A 35-year-old Canadian man was sentenced to 13 years in prison after he was busted with 200 pounds of cocaine in Newport Beach.On Friday, Jean Francois Gosselin plead guilty to possession of a controlled substance with the intent to sell, according to Orange County Superior Court records.
Gosselin's sentence was enhanced because of the amount of drugs he had in his possession. The judged sentenced him to 3 years for possession and an additional 10 years because he had more than 10 kilograms (22 pounds), according to court documents.
On Jan. 20, Orange County Regional Narcotics Suppression officers served a search warrant at his mobile home and Gosselin was arrested after authorities say they found 92 individually wrapped packages of cocaine."
DISCLAIMERText may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder
Drug Bust: Canadian man arrested in Newport Beach after authorities find $19 million worth of cocaine at his home. - ktla.com
On Friday, Jean Francois Gosselin plead guilty to possession of a controlled substance with the intent to sell, according to Orange County Superior Court records.
Gosselin's sentence was enhanced because of the amount of drugs he had in his possession. The judged sentenced him to 3 years for possession and an additional 10 years because he had more than 10 kilograms (22 pounds), according to court documents.
On Jan. 20, Orange County Regional Narcotics Suppression officers served a search warrant at his mobile home and Gosselin was arrested after authorities say they found 92 individually wrapped packages of cocaine."
DISCLAIMERText may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder
Jose Rodolfo Escajeda, also known as 'Rikin,' was extradited to the U.S Alleged drug trafficker extradited by Mexico to US | AP Texas News | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle
Alleged drug trafficker 
extradited by Mexico to US AP Texas News Chron.com - Houston Chronicle: "The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration says that a suspected Mexican drug gang leader linked to a 2006 border incursion by armed traffickers into Texas has been extradited by Mexico to the U.S.The DEA said Saturday that Jose Rodolfo Escajeda, also known as 'Rikin,' was extradited to the U.S. to stand trial on marijuana and cocaine trafficking charges.
Escajeda, who allegedly worked for the Juarez cartel, was indicted by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas in 2006. From a base in Chihuahua, Mexico, he is alleged to have controlled a drug trafficking corridor for marijuana and cocaine in the area of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, located across from El Paso, Texas.
He was arrested by Mexican authorities last year"
:Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder
Customs Sniff Out Record Cocaine Shipment | News | ERR
'This is the biggest quantity of cocaine seized in Estonia's history,' state prosecutor Helga Aadamsoo was quoted by rus.err.ee as saying. She said that the amount was enough to get 5 million people intoxicated.
Rene Kanniste, head of the Tax and Customs investigation unit, said that the cocaine 
was hidden in an air shipment of coffee that arrived from Venezuela, and had an estimated street value of over 6.4 million euros.According to the State Prosecutor, two of the suspects are Estonian citizens, while the other two are citizens of “other countries.” If convicted they face sentences ranging from six years to life in prison.
Before this haul, Estonia's largest cocaine bust was in 2005 when a 43.1 kg of the drug was found hidden in a large cog wheel shipped from Peru. In that case three Israeli citizens were convicted and received sentences of nine, 11 and 15 years."
:Text may be subject to copyright.This blog does not claim copyright to any such text. Copyright remains with the original copyright holder
BBC News - Warning over heroin emergencies in Dorset
Paramedics were called to eight locations in Bournemouth, Dorchester and Wareham on Saturday night.
In total, four men and two woman were taken to hospital.
Two men have since been discharged and conditions of the four remaining in hospital are not thought to be life-threatening.
Another man received treatment from an ambulance crew but was not admitted to hospital, while a further man refused treatment when paramedics attended."
'Superman logo' drug dealer jailed
Police seized drugs with a total street value of £500,000 at a youth club in Poplar, east London, in April and at a house in Loughton, Essex, in June.
Wiltshire, of Romford, Essex, along with Larry Hammersley, 44, of Poplar, Jay Putinas, 25, of Woodford Green, Essex, and Daniel Vann, 32, of Ongar, Essex, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply cocaine.
Hammersley was jailed for six years, Putinas for four-and-a-half years, and Vann for four years, following the investigation by City of London police.
Judge Martin Stephens told the men: 'You did it to make money quite unconcerned about the misery that the trade would bring to so many people.'
He said the operation to prepare and distribute cocaine across the South East on a 'very substantial scale' was 'sophisticated and professionally organised'."
