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Six-Nation Drug Ring Broken Up, DEA Says

Posted on: Thursday, 8 December 2005, 21:00 CST

WASHINGTON - Federal drug agents said Thursday that they have broken up a drug trafficking and money laundering ring that had been operating in the United States and five other countries, seizing more than $7 million, two tons of cocaine and 500 pounds of marijuana.

A federal grand jury in Miami has indicted 24 people on charges that include conspiracy to distribute cocaine, distribution of cocaine, importation of a controlled substance, money laundering and criminal forfeiture, the Drug Enforcement Administration said.

DEA agents made 18 arrests in recent days in Miami and the Dominican Republic as part of Operation Cali Exchange. The group also distributed drugs and laundered money in the Bahamas, Brazil, Colombia and Panama, said DEA Administrator Karen Tandy.

Among those arrested in the Dominican Republic was Eric Gardiner, described by the DEA as the leader of the organization in Panama.

The ring laundered more than $10.2 million in drug proceeds through banks in Chicago, Miami and New York using bulk cash deliveries, wire transfers and a highly secretive and sophisticated black market peso exchange that is favored by drug organizations. Drug profits were then returned to suppliers in Colombia.

The U.S. government has seized three homes in Miami, eight vehicles, a boat and a motorcycle that were used by the defendants or purchased with illegal drug proceeds.

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On the Net:

Drug Enforcement Administration: http://www.dea.gov

Source: Associated Press/AP Online

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