On Tuesday, two indictments were unsealed resulting from two separate DEA narco-terrorism undercover operations, according to a report obtained by the National Association of Chiefs of Police.
The first indictment charges Siavosh Henareh, Bachar Wehbe, and Cetin Aksu with conspiring to provide various forms of support to Hezbollah, an Islamic terrorist group based in Lebanon.
The second indictment charges Taza Gul Alizai ("Gul") with narco-terrorism conspiracy, narco-terrorism, and heroin importation related to his supplying of 15 kilograms of heroin and six AK-47 assault rifles to a DEA confidential source whom Gul believed represented the Taliban.
Henareh and Aksu were arrested Sunday in Bucharest, Romania, where they were detained pending extradition to the United States. Wehbe and Gul were arrested Sunday in the Republic of the Maldives, and arrived in the Southern District of New York early Monday. Wehbe and Gul appeared yesterday in Manhattan federal court.
Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: "Today's indictments provide fresh evidence of what many of us have been saying for some time: that there is a growing nexus between drug trafficking and terrorism, a nexus that increasingly poses a clear and present danger to our national security. Combating this lethal threat requires a bold and proactive approach. And as crime increasingly goes global, and national security threats remain global, the long arm of the law has to get even longer."
DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart stated: "These DEA operations starkly illustrate how drug trafficking is a double threat that fuels both addiction and terrorism. We have successfully targeted, and substantially dismantled two dangerous and complex networks; stopped efforts to arm Hezabollah and Taliban terrorists; and prevented massive amounts of heroin from reaching illicit markets around the world."
"Those responsible for these crimes will now face trial due to the brave and talented men and women of the DEA, the skilled federal prosecutors of the Southern District of New York, and the extraordinary cooperation of our many international and federal agency partners, all whom were instrumental in the success of these DEA operations," she said.
The charges, arrests, and transfers of these four defendants were the result of the close cooperative efforts of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the Special Operations Division of the DEA, and the DEA Country Offices in: Istanbul, Kuala Lumpur, Copenhagen, New Delhi, Athens, Cyprus, and Kabul, according to Bharara.
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