In a statement released on Thursday, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York revealed the details of a two-year undercover investigation in Nairobi that led to the capture of an Iran-based drug dealer. The investigation spanned from 2019 to 2021 and exposed the dealer’s plan to smuggle large quantities of heroin into the United States.
During this operation, the drug dealer organized meetings with potential American business partners in Nairobi. However, unbeknownst to him, these supposed partners turned out to be a police informant and an undercover officer affiliated with the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
In these undisclosed meetings in Nairobi, the drug dealer outlined his strategies for smuggling drugs into the US, with an emphasis on avoiding detection by law enforcement and border officers. To bolster his case, he even presented photographic evidence of his illicit activities, aiming to convince the businessmen to enter into a partnership with him.
The statement from the US Attorney’s office stated, “In December 2019, he arranged for the delivery of a sample of approximately two kilograms of heroin in Mozambique, with the understanding that these drugs would be shipped to the United States for testing and distribution. After the successful shipment of this sample, he intended to provide larger quantities of heroin for importation and distribution within the United States.”
During meetings in Nairobi, Kenya, in October 2021, he agreed to distribute ton-sized quantities of heroin to New York and planned to transport the heroin via maritime routes, using a fishing company as a cover for his narcotics operations, with the intent of generating substantial profits.
Following the incriminating evidence gathered during the operation, the DEA, in collaboration with officers from the National Police Service (NPS), apprehended the 40-year-old drug dealer in Nairobi. He was subsequently extradited to the United States on October 9, 2021. In a US court appearance on October 12, 2021, he was found guilty by a jury in May 2023.
As a result of his conviction, on Wednesday, October 24, 2023, the 40-year-old was sentenced to a 20-year prison term for his role in conspiring to import heroin into the United States. US Attorney Damian Williams emphasized, “He was in the business of peddling poison. His drug trafficking operations had already distributed large quantities of dangerous narcotics worldwide for over a decade. When he attempted to expand his operations into the United States, law enforcement, in collaboration with the dedicated prosecutors of this Office, swiftly halted his life-threatening trade.”
