فاس نيوز ميديا جريدة الكترونية جهوية تعنى بشؤون و أخبار جهة فاس مكناس – متجددة على مدار الساعة
The Office of the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, responsible for investigating the most sensitive and high-profile cases in the United States, has announced charges against three “high-profile” international drug traffickers.
The suspects were arrested last April by members of the National Brigade of Judicial Police (BNPJ) in Marrakech for their connections to criminal networks involved in international trafficking of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and money laundering.
The three traffickers, of Chinese, Ukrainian, and Lithuanian nationalities, were apprehended by Moroccan authorities on April 17, pursuant to international arrest warrants issued by U.S. judicial authorities. They were recently extradited to the United States, where they made their first appearance before a magistrate in the Southern District of New York.
Xiang Gao, Oleksandr Klochkov, and Igors Kricfalusijs have been charged in New York with conspiracy to traffic and distribute fentanyl and methamphetamine in U.S. territory, and laundering of funds derived from this trafficking.
Edward Y. Kim, the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, stated, “Fentanyl and its derivatives continue to have catastrophic impacts on New Yorkers’ lives.” He added that the accused allegedly “used aggressive methods to circumvent our ability to stem the flow of poisons into this country and bring tons of potentially deadly chemicals into the United States.”
U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland emphasized that traffickers responsible for “flooding our country with fentanyl must be held accountable for their crimes.”
Anne Milgram, Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), declared that the indictment issued against these three “high-profile” traffickers underscores the DEA’s commitment to targeting every link in the global fentanyl supply chain. She explained that the accused trafficked “tons of chemical precursors for fentanyl and methamphetamine from China, knowing these chemicals would be used to flood American communities with deadly drugs.”
Milgram added that the defendants also trained drug traffickers on how to use various chemical precursors to manufacture finished fentanyl for the U.S. market, asserting that their indictment “should serve as a warning to drug traffickers operating worldwide.”
The successful apprehension of these high-profile traffickers was made possible thanks to the vigilance, responsiveness, and cooperation of Moroccan security services and their efforts in tracking down internationally wanted individuals in transnational crime cases.
