Accused Mexican drug trafficker extradited to U.S.

DENVER (Reuters) - A Mexican accused of being a major supplier of cocaine to the United States has been extradited to Colorado to face narcotics trafficking and money laundering charges, U.S. officials said on Wednesday.

Oscar Arriola, reputed to have led a cartel that smuggled two tons of cocaine a month into the United States before authorities dismantled the ring around 2004, was arrested in Mexico in 2006 and handed over to U.S. officials on Tuesday.

He appeared in federal court in Denver on Wednesday where he was advised of the charges against him, officials said.

A U.S. grand jury indicted Arriola in December 2003 on charges of conspiracy to distribute cocaine, importation of cocaine and money laundering conspiracy. If convicted, he faces a penalty of 10 years to life in prison.

The cartel collected hundreds of millions of dollars in drug money in the United States and funneled the cash to Arriola and other leaders of his organization in Mexico, according to court documents.

"They were one of the major transporters of cocaine from Mexico into the United States, and they had an impact throughout the United States," said Jeffrey Sweetin, special agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

The investigation of Arriola's organization began with a tip that led authorities to a Colorado ranch used as a cocaine storage and transportation hub, officials said. Arriola's brother, Miguel, has previously pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and is awaiting sentencing in Colorado.

Over 100 high-level Mexican drug traffickers have been identified by U.S. officials since 2002, with more than half of them arrested and nearly 30 extradited to the United States, Sweetin said.

Much of the credit for rounding them up is due to Mexican politicians and prosecutors who show "phenomenal courage" and "risk their lives every day," Sweetin said. "It's the opposite of what people believe about it being a narco state."

(Reporting and writing by Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; editing by Chris Wilson)