Two Pakistani Nationals Extradited to the United States to Face Drug Charges in the Southern District of New York
July 30, 2021
Maulabaksh Gorgeech와 Niamatullah Gorgeech는 아프가니스탄에서 뉴욕시로 대량의 헤로인을 보내려고 시도한 혐의를 받고 있다.
Maulabaksh Gorgeech와 Niamatullah Gorgeech는 2021년 4월 11일 태국 방콕에서 태국 당국에 의해 구금되었으며 곧 미국으로 송환될 예정이다.
특히, Maulabaksh Gorgeech는 또한 미국으로 헤로인을 수입하려는 음모 혐의로 두 번째 기소되었고, 각 건별 최대 종신형으로 의무적으로 최소 10년형이 선고될 수 있다.
Maulabaksh Gorgeech와 Niamatullah Gorgeech는 아시아에 기반을 둔 마약 밀매상인으로2019년 수 킬로그램 분량의 헤로인을 구매하여 미국으로 수입하기 원하는 개인과 거래를 논의하기 시작했는데, 사실 이들은 DEA의 지시에 따라 뉴욕에 기반을 둔 헤로인 유통업자로 위장한 비밀 DEA 요원들이였다.
Maulabaksh Gorgeech and Niamatullah Gorgeech are Charged with Attempting to Send Large-Scale Quantities of Heroin from Afghanistan to New York City for Distribution
WASHINGTON – DEA Administrator Anne Milgram and U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Audrey Strauss today announced the extradition two Pakistani citizens, who will face charges for attempting to import large quantities of heroin into the United States. Maulabaksh Gorgeech and Niamatullah Gorgeech were taken into custody by Thai authorities in Bangkok, Thailand, on April 11, 2021, and were flown to the United States today where they will be presented before United States Magistrate Judge Sarah Netburn.
“At a time when the United States is facing an opioid overdose epidemic of unprecedented proportions, it is critical that DEA stop the flow of heroin into the country before it makes its way to our communities,” said Administrator Milgram. “Directly because of DEA’s efforts, Maulabaksh Gorgeech and Niamatullah Gorgeech are now on American soil, facing significant criminal charges for their alleged crimes.”
“As alleged, Maulabaksh Gorgeech and Niamatullah Gorgeech trafficked in wholesale importation of heroin to the United States,” said U.S. Attorney Strauss. “Thanks to the DEA’s global reach and the assistance of law enforcement authorities in Thailand, the defendants are in U.S. custody and facing serious federal charges.”
According to the allegations contained in the complaints charging the defendants, which were unsealed today in Manhattan federal court:
Maulabaksh Gorgeech and Niamatullah Gorgeech, Asia-based drug traffickers, began communicating and meeting with individuals whom they believed were heroin traffickers interested in purchasing multi-kilogram quantities of heroin for importation into the United States in late 2019. These individuals were, in fact, confidential sources working at the DEA’s direction, and an undercover DEA agent posing as a New York-based heroin distributor.
Maulabaksh Gorgeech, 43, and Niamatullah Gorgeech, 37, are charged with one count of attempting to import heroin into the United States. Maulabaksh Gorgeech is also charged with a second count of conspiracy to import heroin into the United States. Each count carries a maximum sentence of life in prison and a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison.
Administrator Milgram praised the outstanding investigative efforts of the DEA’s Special Operations Division Bilateral Investigations Unit, and the OCDETF New York Strike Force; the DEA’s Bangkok, Islamabad, Kabul, and Bucharest Country Offices, and Guam Resident Office; the United States Central Command; U.S. Embassy in Bangkok’s Consul General’s Office and Diplomatic Security Service; the Royal Thai Government’s Office of the Attorney General - International Affairs Department, Royal Thai Police Narcotics Suppression Bureau - Sensitive Investigative Unit, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission. Administrator Milgram also thanked the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs for its ongoing assistance.
The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit.
The charges contained in the complaints are merely accusations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
출처 : https://www.dea.gov/press-releases/2021/07/30/two-pakistani-nationals-extradited-united-states-face-drug-charges