PJM Correspondent in Brasilia*
On August 7th, 44-year old Juan Carlos Ram√≠rez Abad√≠a, America’s most wanted international drug trafficker, was arrested at a luxury housing complex in Aldeia da Serra, an upscale suburb of Sao Paulo, Brazil. This was the result of a two year long joint operation of the Brazilian Federal Police and the DEA.
Abadía was one of the most influential Colombian drug lords in the now extinct Cali Cartel and, upon his early release from prison in Colombia five years ago, was believed to be the leader of the North Valle Cartel, which smuggled into the US approximately 500 tons of cocaine worth in excess of $10 billion between 1990 and 2004.
He was wanted for at least 300 murders in Colombia and 15 in the US, including DEA agents – he had a prize on his head of $5 million, which will be transferred to the Brazilian Federal Police and will help fund further anti-drug operations.
Abadía allegedly moved to Brazil three years ago in order to establish a money-laundering scheme involving investments in real estate and luxury cars. In order to evade detection, he kept a low profile, seldom leaving his mansion Рhe commanded his illicit businesses using cell phones and the Internet. He also underwent several plastic surgeries which left his face virtually unrecognizable. The initial police raid found over $1 million dollars (in euros, dollars and reais) stashed into the floor tiling, fake walls and secret passageways, as well as 150 cell phones. According to the State Department, his personal fortune is worth at least $1.8 billion.
The American government has already asked for his extradition to the US, where he will most likely face life imprisonment.
It is clear that this is a major step in the global war on drugs. What evades most analysts, though, are the significant effects events like this have on fighting terror, both locally and internationally.
South America is the home of one of the most populous Arab communities outside the Middle East.
The tri-border area between Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina was the home base of the Iranian-funded Hizballah terrorists who committed the bloodiest terrorist attacks of the subcontinent in Argentina in 1992 and 1994 (114 killed and hundreds injured), and where infamous Al-Qaeda terrorist and 9/11 mastermind, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed had established a massive fundraising operation.(link in Spanish)
Other countries in the region like Ecuador, Chile and Colombia are also struggling to keep influential and dangerous members of their substantial Moslem communities under surveillance.
David Meir-Levi, in a 2004 article at FrontPage Magazine outlined the threat in a simple, yet insightful way:
“Why would Middle Eastern terror groups spend untold millions of dollars to set up bases in South America? Certainly to benefit from the drug trade and money-laundering opportunities that lax or corrupt governments afford. Clearly, to attack South American targets (inter alia, Israeli or American embassies, Jewish communities, and/or other institutions that are involved in South American financial, political, or military interaction with the USA). Probably also to facilitate the planning and execution of future terror attacks in South America or abroad.”
Moslems in the region, religiously and ideologically sympathetic to terror organizations like Hizballah and Hamas, if not actual members of the groups, have taken notice of the local rampant drug trafficking industry combined with the notoriously inefficient law enforcement as an ideal opportunity to raise funds for those groups.
The don’t alway do so by avoiding the authorities – in some cases, they are cultivating their relationships with certain regimes. The rise of contrarian governments like Hugo Ch√°vez’s in Venezuela and Evo Morales’ in Bolivia, and the growing rabid anti-Americanism they represent have shown potential for alliances.
There have reportedly been, in the past few years, many high level meetings between Hizbullah operatives and senior FARC leaders, both in Colombia and in Lebanon.
The FARC – Spanish acronym for “Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia” – is a paramilitary Communist guerilla group, with deep ties with Colombian cocaine and heroin cartels, which control a significant portion of the territory of that country. For ideological reasons, they are openly supported by Ch√°vez’s regime, which provides them with funding, weapons and training.
Although this scenario may look like a very intricate web of conflicting interests, the reasoning behind religious Muslim leaders cozying up to South American drug lords and anti-American dictators, is quite simple.
First, the environment in Latin America is ideal for their fundraising activities – they can get significant amounts of money with little effort and almost no danger of being thwarted by corrupt law enforcement, which is presumably showing solidarity to their their anti-Americanism.
Second, as a bonus, the radical Moslem groups believe they are helping to bring about the demise of American society by flooding it with cheap, easy-to-obtain drugs and encouraging Americans to succumb to their vices and sins.
A depressing situation – which is why the arrest of major drug lords like Abad√≠a should be applauded – not only for the immediate beneficial effect of bringing fewer drugs being available to our youth, but for the damage it will do to terrorists’ funding schemes all over the world.
* Pajamas Media correspondent in Brasilia is a writer who wishes to remain anonymous.
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