International - the five largest drug busts in history

[beentheredonethatagain]

The war on drugs continues to grow in value as billions of dollars are generated monthly throughout the world. The illegal importation of drugs will never stop despite billion dollar drug busts and wide scale deaths. Despite the busts, drug lords continue to rake in the cash and live lavish, pampered lives. Following are the Top Largest Five Drug Busts In History.

5. 2005 - Cocaine
Story - Columbian authorities in May of 2005, seized 13. 8 tons of cocaine hidden on the banks of the River Mira. The estimated street value of the illegal drugs was $350 million dollars. Armed agents executed nine arrests and seized nine assault rifles during the raid.

4. 2007 - Marijuana
Story - Hailed as the largest maritime bust in United States History, the U.S. Coast Guard's seizure of more than 40,000 pounds of cocaine comes in at number 4. During this bust in March of 2007, the Coast Guard seized the contraband from three separate ships and the estimated street value at the time was over $500 million dollars.

3. 1984 - Cocaine
Story - At its height, it was reported that the Medellin Cartel led by the late Pablo Escobar was earning $25 billion a year. Therefore, the seizure of 14 tons of cocaine, worth more than $1 billion dollars in 1984 was a small cost of doing business. Escobar's cartel had a laboratory called "Tranquilandia" within the jungles of Columbia. In 1984, acting on an inside tip from the United States DEA raided Tranquilandia and seized the contraband.

2. 1989 - Cocaine
Story - Rafael Munoz Talavera, a Mexican Drug Lord was accused by United States Authorities of smuggling 21 tons of cocaine, which were discovered in 1989 in a Los Angeles warehouse. Talavera was a member of one of Mexico's most profitable drug cartels, the Juarez cartel, which controlled the $10 billion a year narcotics trade flow through Ciudad Juarez Mexico into El Paso,Texas. Talvera was eventually murdered, leading to a war to control the cartel.

1. 1991 Heroin
Story - In 1991, Drug Enforcement Agents and Local Law Enforcement seized 59 boxes containing 1,080 pounds of Heroin in what has been billed as the largest heroin drug bust ever. Television cameras depicted the abundance of drugs and pundits stated that the supply was enough to fix the United State's estimated 500,000 heroin addicts for a month. The drug war officials then stated that the street value of the seized contraband was between $2.7 and $4 billion dollars.

[gunslot.com/blog/top-five-5-largest-drug-busts-histor

[DopinDan]

Interesting.

SWIM is curious as to what are the largest shipments that ever got by the "authorities" right under their noses. Guess that's something we won't know. SWIM would also love to know the % of confiscated "contraband that ends of back on the street to fund covert ops and other corrpution.

SWIM has heard that the cartels throw the "authorities" a bone by tipping them off to say a ton of coke coming through on a ship, and while they are busy bragging about that bust, 20 tons are slipping right past them on another ship.

Didn't mean to derail your thread, it just got me to thinking about drug busts.

[beentheredonethatagain]

Originally Posted by DopinDan

Interesting.

SWIM is curious as to what are the largest shipments that ever got by the "authorities" right under their noses. Guess that's something we won't know. SWIM would also love to know the % of confiscated "contraband that ends of back on the street to fund covert ops and other corrpution.

SWIM has heard that the cartels throw the "authorities" a bone by tipping them off to say a ton of coke coming through on a ship, and while they are busy bragging about that bust, 20 tons are slipping right past them on another ship.

Didn't mean to derail your thread, it just got me to thinking about drug busts.

no worries about de-railment of thread, it's all about the unknown or I should say, it's a thought provoking article, and it does have us wondering of all the mega tons that pass undiscovered.

not too certain that it goes back and hits the streets for funding of covert ops. It certainly has been rumored that the C.I.A has done this , no real evidence has ever been put forth.

[Decstar]

Let's not forget this one:
http://www.onlinejournal.com/artman/...cle_3745.shtml

[Alfa]

That's only 3 tonnes of cocaine.

[julian]

What about this one? This has got to be the biggest drug bust relative to the market for the drug. 100 tons of cocaine can and will be replaced almost immediately to meet the demand. The market for cocaine is so large that a bust of any size will have little effect on the overall market. LSD is different however, this bust changed the LSD market forever.

Originally Posted by Alfa

March 31, 2003

PICKARD AND APPERSON CONVICTED OF LSD CHARGES
LARGEST LSD LAB SEIZURE IN DEA HISTORY


Special Agent in Charge Stephen Delgado, Drug Enforcement Administration, San Francisco Field Division, and United States Attorney Eric Melgren, District of Kansas, announced today that Bay Area residents William Leonard Pickard, 57, Mill Valley, California, and Clyde Apperson, 47, Sunnyvale, California, were found guilty today, following an eleven week jury trail of one count of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute more than 10 grams of LSD from August 1999 through November 2000 and one count of possession with the intent to distribute more than 10 grams of LSD on November 6, 2000.


Melgren stated that according to court testimony, this was the largest LSD lab seizure ever made by the Drug Enforcement Administration. DEA agents seized approximately 41.3 kilograms (90.86 pounds) of LSD, approximately 23.6 kilograms (51.92 pounds) of iso-LSD, a by-product from the manufacture of LSD.


Further trial evidence established that in the history of DEA there have only been four seizures of complete LSD labs and three of these seizures involved Packard and Apperson including a lab in Mountain View, California in 1998, a lab in Oregon in 1996, and this lab in Wamego, Kansas


According to court testimony, on October 31, 2000, DEA agents conducted a search of a silo site near Wamego, Kansas, and found a LSD lab packed in storage boxes. On November 6, 2000, Pickard and Apperson were moving the illegal lab when they were stopped by the Kansas Highway Patrol. Apperson was arrested driving the rental truck containing the lab. Pickard, who was driving a Buick LeSabre, fled on foot and was arrested the next day at a farm outside Wamego. Fourteen canisters of a chemical required to produce LSD valued at over $1,000,000 were found at the missile silo. According to court testimony, Pickard and Apperson previously manufactured LSD in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where every five weeks the lab produced about 2.2 pounds of LSD, approximately 10 million doses that cost less than one cent a dose to produce and would sell for as much as $10 a dose. According to court testimony, the LSD was shipped to California and later to Europe for distribution.


Pickard and Apperson each face a minimum of ten years and a maximum of life in federal prison without parole. Sentencing is scheduled for August 8, 2003 at 9:00 a. m. in Kansas. Pickard remains in federal custody and Apperson was remanded to federal custody today.


The DEA San Francisco office initiated this case and provided crucial assistance throughout the trial. SAC Delgado stated: "The investigators in this case displayed extraordinary tenacity and dedicated long hours away from home and their families. LSD, like all illegal drugs, are a threat to our children and our communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. The San Francisco office will continue its relentless efforts to protect the Nation from the dangers posed by drug traffickers."


United States Attorney Eric Melgren stated: "This is just one example of the fine work of the Drug Enforcement Administration, in cooperation with other law enforcement agencies, in the continuing fight against illegal drugs. We are pleased to have led the effort to protect our citizens against the dangers of LSD by this significant disruption in the nationwide supply of this drug.


SAC Delgado wishes to publicly thank United States Attorney Eric Melgren for his leadership in the prosecution of this case and all the local law enforcement agencies that helped us bring this case to today's conclusion.
Pickard And Apperson Sentenced On LSD Charges
Largest LSD Lab Seizure In DEA History

William J. Renton, Jr., Special Agent in Charge of the St. Louis Division, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and United States Attorney Eric Melgren announced today that William Leonard Pickard, 58, Mill Valley, California, and Clyde Apperson, 48, Sunnyvale, California, were sentenced this afternoon by U.S. District Judge Richard D. Rogers. Pickard was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. Apperson was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment without parole.


Melgren said that Pickard and Apperson were found guilty on March 31, 2003, following an eleven week jury trial of one count of conspiracy to manufacture and distribute more than 10 grams of LSD from August 1999 through November 2000 and one count of possession with the intent to distribute more than 10 grams of LSD on November 6, 2000.



Melgren stated that according to court testimony, this was the single largest seizure of an operable LSD lab in the history of the Drug Enforcement Administration. DEA agents seized approximately 41.3 kilograms (90.86 pounds) of LSD, approximately 97.5 kilograms (214.5 pounds) of lysergic acid, a precursor to LSD, approximately 23.6 kilograms (51.92 pounds) of iso-LSD, a by-product from the manufacture of LSD and 19 kilograms (41.8 pounds) of ergocristine, a precursor to LSD with the ability to create an additional 12.4 kilograms (27.28 pounds of LSD.

Further trial evidence established that in the history of DEA there have only been four seizures of complete LSD labs and three of these seizures involved Pickard and Apperson including a lab in Mountainview, California in 1998, a lab in Oregon in 1996, and this lab in Wamego, Kansas.

Melgren said that according to court testimony, on October 31, 2000, DEA agents conducted a search of a silo site near Wamego, Kansas, and found a LSD lab packed in storage boxes. On November 6, 2000, Pickard and Apperson were moving the illegal lab when they were stopped by the Kansas Highway Patrol. Apperson was arrested driving the rental truck containing the lab. Pickard, who was driving a Buick LeSabre, fled on foot and was arrested the next day at a farm outside Wamego. Fourteen canisters of a chemical required to produce LSD valued at over $1,000,000 were found at the missile silo. According to court testimony, Pickard and Apperson previously manufactured LSD in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where every five weeks the lab produced about 2.2 pounds of LSD, approximately 10 million doses that cost less than one cent a dose to produce and would sell for as much as $10 a dose. According to court testimony, the LSD was shipped to California and later to Europe for distribution.



The site of the LSD lab was a former missile silo

Melgren commended the excellent work of the Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA Task Force, and Kansas Highway Patrol with special recognition to Special Agent Karl Nichols, DEA, Special Agent Roger Hanzlik, DEA Task Force, Ralph Sorrell, Leavenworth Police Department/DEA Task Force, and O.C.D.E.T.F. in this investigation and Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Hough in this prosecution. O.C.D.E.T.F., Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, is a Congressionally funded task force with multi-agency federal, state and local members dedicated to investigating and prosecuting large-scale narcotics and money laundering cases nationally.




During the case, agents seized highly sophisticated chemical glasswae required to manufacture LSD

"Our nation's war on drugs is not limited to major metropolitan areas or border states. Manufacturers and traffickers of illegal drugs are increasingly moving to less populated areas in an attempt to avoid detection," Melgren said. "This case clearly demonstrates that moving such illegal activity to Kansas is a mistake. Due to the cooperative efforts of our federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, they will be caught. Due to the commitment of my office, they will be aggressively prosecuted. Due to Kansans' common sense and respect for the law, those who are guilty of such activity will be convicted. And due to the federal sentencing guidelines, they will be sentenced to significant time in prison. The message from this case is clear: drug dealers and manufacturers may not consider Kansas a place where they may get away with their illegal activies.



The decontmination process following the seizure of the LSD lab

DEA Special Agent in Charge William J. Renton, Jr. stated, "the sentencing of William Pickard and Clyde Apperson brings to conclusion their significant role in the international production and distribution of LSD. These defendants were proven, by overwhelming evidence, to be responsible for the illicit manufacture of the majority of the LSD sold in this nation. The proof of the significance of these prosecutions and convictions lies in the fact that LSD availability in the United States was reduced by 95 % in the two years following their arrest. The Drug Enforcement Administration is proud to have led this historic investigation, and to have had the close cooperation of our partners in state and local law enforcement. I congratulate U.S. Attorney Eric Melgren and his staff for the outstanding prosecution conducted in this matter."

Reputation Comments on this post:

an accurate addition to the list

[Greenport]

Hmm, from looking at the data supplied in those charts regarding arrests and hospital visits before and after the pickard LSD bust, it seems like that actually didn't have much of an effect at all on the amount of LSD on the street. Perhaps it's just some media story and didn't really have much of an impact - as LSD rates were already apparently dropping at a significant rate by that time.

A little bit of a dent, yes, but not a significant omgz all the acid is gone dropoff.

[beentheredonethatagain]

Originally Posted by Greenport

Hmm, from looking at the data supplied in those charts regarding arrests and hospital visits before and after the pickard LSD bust, it seems like that actually didn't have much of an effect at all on the amount of LSD on the street. Perhaps it's just some media story and didn't really have much of an impact - as LSD rates were already apparently dropping at a significant rate by that time.

A little bit of a dent, yes, but not a significant omgz all the acid is gone dropoff.

the reason for the decline of LSD arrest prior to Pickard's arrest may be due to cops arresting a lower level key player prior, putting a dent in the network, hence no longer the flow of acid, resulting in less bust.

then cops prolly got the lower lever guy to rat/set-up the top dogs, fuckin snitches.

[julian]

Originally Posted by beentheredonethatagain

the reason for the decline of LSD arrest prior to Pickard's arrest may be due to cops arresting a lower level key player prior, putting a dent in the network, hence no longer the flow of acid, resulting in less bust.

then cops prolly got the lower lever guy to rat/set-up the top dogs, fuckin snitches.

God damn confidential informants can burn in hell.