NCJ Number
89724
Date Published
1981
Length
634 pages
Annotation
Representatives from several Government agencies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the U.S. Customs Service, the Department of State (DOS), and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), along with convicted drug traffickers testified on drug smuggling to the United States from South America and Southeast Asia and Government efforts to combat the problem.
Abstract
A Department of Justice attorney and a special IRS agent first described Operation Gateway, an interagency effort using drug traffickers' tax returns, conspiracy statutes, and drug offender statutes to seize assets of drug traffickers and increase their prison sentences. Three persons currently incarcerated for major narcotics violations told of their involvement in international drug trafficking through an organization based in St. Louis. The second day of hearings focused on Southeast Asia and its bumper crop of heroin, hearing reports from staff investigators, DEA officials, and the U.S. Coast Guard. Specific topics addressed included money washing through Hong Kong financial institutions and the entry of Japanese organized crime, Yakuza, into drug trafficking. The third day began with an overview of DEA activities in South America, with attention to Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. Efforts include technical assistance, normalization of relations with Bolivia, and eradication programs in Peru. Testimony also concerned financial aspects of the drug trade, the ineffectiveness of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) statutes for prosecuting drug traffickers, and methods used to launder profits from drug dealing. Witnesses' formal statements and newspaper articles are included.