Justice Department prosecutors unsealed an indictment today in federal district court in Manhattan targeting a “stunning and sophisticated” alleged drug trafficking operation in Mexico that is accused of pumping cocaine and marijuana into the United States. The indictment contains a $1 billion forfeiture demand.
Nineteen reputed members of the Gulf Cartel/Los Zetas drug trafficking organization, now known as the “Company,” have been charged in federal court in Washington and in Manhattan for their alleged roles in the drug trafficking conspiracy, Justice officials said. A three-count superceding indictment was returned June 9 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, where members were first indicted in 2008.
Prosecutors say leaders of the group directed shipments of cocaine and marijuana via boats, airplanes and cars from Venezuela and Colombia to Guatemala and Mexico. Drugs were then transported into Texas for distribution in the United States, according to prosecutors.
The trafficking organization used “sophisticated” record-keeping programs to document shipping, employment and payment to law enforcement officers, according to the Justice Department.
The State Department announced today rewards of up to $50 million for information leading to the capture of 10 of the defendants, including four leaders of the organization. The department has paid more than $44 million in rewards in total since the inception of the Narcotics Rewards Program in the 1980s.
“We have learned that the most effective way to disrupt and dismantle criminal organizations is to prosecute their leaders and seize their funding,” said Lanny Breuer, assistant attorney general for the Criminal Division, in a statement. “Today’s coordinated actions by the Departments of Justice, State and Treasury will serve not only to bring these individuals to justice, but also to significantly slow the flow of cash that is so vital to cartel operations.”
It is cases like these that get headlines and keep the public thinking that something is being done about drug trafficking. When, in fact, the only beneficiaries of these operations are law enforcement. They justify their jobs and perpetuate the myth that certain drugs are inherently bad. Prohibition is a complete failure. Let's look at drug policy instead of these "sophisticated organizations" which are a dime a dozen.
Posted by: Joseph Hayden | July 21, 2009 at 04:04 PM
As we are pushed into the North American Alliance then we need to stop this type of drug traffic and violence associated. I live near the Tijuana boarder where last year there were 4500 deaths. If this continues and we open our boarders how bad do you think this will get and how many more innocent people will die. With a $50,000,000 reward such as this someone will come forward. This should get some desperate person's attention who needs the money and wants out of the situation they are in and fear.
Posted by: K. A. Foster | July 21, 2009 at 02:15 PM
I've never heard of a big federal drug indictment that wasn't "stunning," etc. What is "stunning" is that cocaine prosecutions are tied to marijuana prosecutions. It's a problem that's never going to be stopped or fixed until it's seen in reasonable perspective. Desperate people in Latin America are going to supply the insatiable North American drug appetite. Federal officials are going to pump up their self-importance. And new players move into the old players' places.
Posted by: sscott | July 20, 2009 at 11:46 PM