August 25, 2017
Suspected druglord Muhammad Asif Hafeez faces extradition to US
The alleged mastermind behind a global narcotics smuggling empire has appeared in court after being seized in London in a UK-US operation.
Muhammad Asif Hafeez, who was arrested at property in the Regent’s Park area, faces extradition to the US.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) in London said after the arrest that communications between members of Hafeez’s syndicate showed he was known as the Sultan.
Hafeez, 58, a Pakistani national, is alleged to be the head of an organisation spanning Europe, Africa (Kenya), Asia and North America, that produced and smuggled drugs including heroin, methamphetamine, or crystal meth, and ephedrine.
The NCA worked with the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to investigate Hafeez after he was allegedly identified as the source of large quantities of heroin being smuggled into Kenya from Pakistan and Afghanistan.
He is said to have been supplying a family-based narcotics syndicate in Mombasa, Kenya with what he boasted was “diamond carat”-quality heroin.
The family involved had been smuggling drugs into and out of Kenya for decades, according to US diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks. One leading member of the clan was killed in a drive-by shooting in Amsterdam’s red light district in 2000.
Members of the Kenyan gang were allegedly recorded as they agreed to sell 99kg (218 lbs) of the Sultan’s heroin to a group of men they thought were South American drug dealers looking to smuggle it into the US, but who were in fact working for the DEA.
At one point during the sting operation, the South Americans were introduced to the Sultan during a Skype call, which was covertly recorded.
Four men were subsequently arrested in a raid on a mansion in the wealthy Mombasa beach suburb of Nyali and were extradited to the US this year. The 99kg of heroin was seized.
Another seizure related to Hafeez’s alleged narcotics trafficking involved the recovery of 18 tonnes of ephedrine in India.
The NCA said the allegations he faced included agreeing to smuggle narcotics into the US since at least 2013.
Hafeez is said to own two properties in London, and spend most of his time in Dubai.
He appeared at Westminster magistrates court on Friday for the start of extradition proceedings to the US, where he is wanted on charges of conspiring to import drugs. One of Hafeez’s sons looked on from the public gallery.
Wearing spectacles, a turquoise polo shirt and black leather jacket, Hafeez sat with his arms crossed as Hashim Chaudri, prosecuting, said he could face life imprisonment in the US.
Source: Suspected druglord Muhammad Asif Hafeez faces extradition to US
Suspected druglord Muhammad Asif Hafeez faces extradition to US
The alleged mastermind behind a global narcotics smuggling empire has appeared in court after being seized in London in a UK-US operation.
Muhammad Asif Hafeez, who was arrested at property in the Regent’s Park area, faces extradition to the US.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) in London said after the arrest that communications between members of Hafeez’s syndicate showed he was known as the Sultan.
Hafeez, 58, a Pakistani national, is alleged to be the head of an organisation spanning Europe, Africa (Kenya), Asia and North America, that produced and smuggled drugs including heroin, methamphetamine, or crystal meth, and ephedrine.
The NCA worked with the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to investigate Hafeez after he was allegedly identified as the source of large quantities of heroin being smuggled into Kenya from Pakistan and Afghanistan.
He is said to have been supplying a family-based narcotics syndicate in Mombasa, Kenya with what he boasted was “diamond carat”-quality heroin.
The family involved had been smuggling drugs into and out of Kenya for decades, according to US diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks. One leading member of the clan was killed in a drive-by shooting in Amsterdam’s red light district in 2000.
Members of the Kenyan gang were allegedly recorded as they agreed to sell 99kg (218 lbs) of the Sultan’s heroin to a group of men they thought were South American drug dealers looking to smuggle it into the US, but who were in fact working for the DEA.
At one point during the sting operation, the South Americans were introduced to the Sultan during a Skype call, which was covertly recorded.
Four men were subsequently arrested in a raid on a mansion in the wealthy Mombasa beach suburb of Nyali and were extradited to the US this year. The 99kg of heroin was seized.
Another seizure related to Hafeez’s alleged narcotics trafficking involved the recovery of 18 tonnes of ephedrine in India.
The NCA said the allegations he faced included agreeing to smuggle narcotics into the US since at least 2013.
Hafeez is said to own two properties in London, and spend most of his time in Dubai.
He appeared at Westminster magistrates court on Friday for the start of extradition proceedings to the US, where he is wanted on charges of conspiring to import drugs. One of Hafeez’s sons looked on from the public gallery.
Wearing spectacles, a turquoise polo shirt and black leather jacket, Hafeez sat with his arms crossed as Hashim Chaudri, prosecuting, said he could face life imprisonment in the US.
Source: Suspected druglord Muhammad Asif Hafeez faces extradition to US
