Alleged Afghan Narcotics Trafficker Ordered Detained Pending Trial on U.S. Drug Charges

Alleged Afghan Narcotics Trafficker Ordered Detained Pending Trial on U.S.
Drug Charges

WASHINGTON, June 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Haji Bagcho, aka Haji Bagh
Chagul, an Afghan national, was ordered detained today by Magistrate Judge
John M. Facciola in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia while he
awaits trial on U.S. narcotics charges, announced Assistant Attorney General
Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division and Acting Administrator Michele M.
Leonhart of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Bagcho was charged in a two-count indictment unsealed June 24, 2009, with one
count of conspiracy to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin knowing and
intending that it would be imported into the United States and one count of
distribution of one kilogram or more of heroin knowing and intending that it
be imported into the United States. Conviction on either of these charges
carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum of
life in prison. The indictment also contains a forfeiture allegation that
would require Bagcho, if convicted, to forfeit the proceeds of his criminal
activity.

"People who commit crimes against the United States from outside our borders
are not immune from justice, as this indictment proves," said Assistant
Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer.

"The indictment of Haji Bagcho demonstrates our commitment to bring dangerous
drug traffickers to justice," said DEA Acting Administrator Michele M.
Leonhart. "This alleged drug lord sought to import heroin into our country.
We will stop these narco-traffickers and stem their flow of illicit drugs."

In September 2006, the DEA and the Criminal Division's Narcotic and Dangerous
Drug Section (NDDS) began investigating Bagcho's alleged heroin trafficking
activities in the area along the Afghan/Pakistan border. Bagcho arrived in
the United States from Afghanistan on June 23, 2009.

The case is being prosecuted by trial attorneys from NDDS. The investigation
in this case was led by the Special Operations Division and DEA's Kabul
Country Office. Significant assistance in this matter was provided by
attorneys in the Criminal Division's Senior Federal Prosecutors Program in
Kabul and the Criminal Division's Office of International Affairs. The
Government of Afghanistan, through the Attorney General's Office, the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of the Interior and the Afghan Counter
Narcotics Justice Task Force played significant roles in the this matter.

An indictment is a formal charging document notifying the defendant of his
charges. All persons charged by an indictment are presumed innocent until
proven guilty.

SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice

U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs, +1-202-514-2007, TDD
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