The Art Of The Deal? Biden Administration Trades The Merchant of Death For Pot-Smoking Basketball Player

The Biden administration traded Viktor Bout, a drug and gun trafficker called "The Merchant of Death" (seen in the above photo), for Brittany Griner, a woman basketball player imprisoned on narcotic charges. 

I’m thankful that Griner will be released, but was this a good trade?

I think not. 

Below is the DEA’s April 2012 announcement that Bout was sentenced to 25 years in prison: 

DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart today announced that international arms dealer VIKTOR BOUT was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for conspiring to sell millions of dollars’ worth of weapons, including hundreds of surface-to-air missiles and over 20,000 AK-47s to the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (the “FARC”), a designated foreign terrorist organization based in Colombia. BOUT understood that the weapons would be used to kill Americans in Colombia. On November 2, 2011, BOUT was convicted on all four counts for which he was charged after a three-week jury trial before U.S. District Judge Shira A. Scheindlin.

“The crimes Viktor Bout committed represent the worst-case scenario for modern law enforcement--the merger of criminal international narcotics cartels with their terrorism enablers,” Leonhart said. “But his sentencing today also reflects the best of modern international law enforcement-- sophisticated, determined, and coordinated. Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of criminal investigators and prosecutors in the United States, Thailand, Romania, Curacao and elsewhere, the ‘Merchant of Death’ has finally been held to account in a court of law for his years of profiteering from death and misery around the world.” 

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Viktor Bout has been international arms trafficking enemy number one for many years, arming some of the most violent conflicts around the globe. He was finally brought to justice in an American court for agreeing to provide a staggering number of military grade weapons to an avowed terrorist organization committed to killing Americans. Today’s sentence is a fitting coda for this career arms trafficker of the most dangerous order.” 

According to the Indictment and evidence presented at the trial: 

Since the 1990s, BOUT has been an international weapons trafficker. As a result of his weapons trafficking activities in Liberia, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control within the Department of Treasury placed him on the Specially Designated Nationals list in 2004. The designation prohibits any transactions between BOUT and U.S. nationals and freezes any of his assets that are within the jurisdiction of the United States. 

Between November 2007 and March 2008, BOUT agreed to sell millions of dollars’ worth of weapons to the FARC, including 700-800 surface-to-air missiles (“SAMs”), over 20,000 AK-47 firearms, 10 million rounds of ammunition, five tons of C-4 plastic explosives, “ultralight” airplanes outfitted with grenade launchers, and unmanned aerial vehicles. BOUT agreed to sell the weapons to two confidential sources working with the DEA (the “CSs”), who represented that they were acquiring them for the FARC, with the specific understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack U.S. helicopters in Colombia. 

During a covertly recorded meeting in Thailand on March 6, 2008, BOUT stated to the CSs that he could arrange to airdrop the arms to the FARC in Colombia and offered to sell them two cargo planes that could be used for arms deliveries. He also provided a map of South America and asked the CSs to show him American radar locations in Colombia. BOUT said that he understood that the CSs wanted the arms to use against American personnel in Colombia, and advised that, “we have the same enemy,” referring to the United States. He also stated that the FARC’s fight against the United States was also his fight and that he had been “fighting the United States…for ten to fifteen years.” During the meeting, he also offered to provide people to train the FARC in the use of the arms. 

The evidence presented at trial included a recording of the March 6, 2008, meeting between BOUT, the CSs, his former associate Andrew Smulian, and others. Smulian was charged along with BOUT in March 2008 and pled guilty in July 2008. Smulian cooperated with the Government and, along with the two CSs, provided testimony at the trial.  

In addition to his prison term, Judge Scheindlin sentenced BOUT to 5 years of supervised released and ordered him to forfeit $15 million. 

BOUT was arrested in Thailand in March 2008 based on a Complaint filed in Manhattan federal court. He was subsequently charged in a four-count Indictment in April 2008 and extradited to the Southern District of New York in November 2010. At trial, he was convicted of (1) conspiring to kill U.S. nationals; (2) conspiring to kill U.S. officers and employees; (3) conspiring to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles; and (4) conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. 

Besides the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Southern District of New York, the Royal Thai Police was instrumental in the success of the Bout case. In addition, the Romanian National Police, the Romanian Prosecutor’s Office Attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice, the Korps Politie Curaçao of the Netherlands Antilles, and the Danish National Police Security Services assisted, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.

A DEA Agent, An Undercover Sting And the Capture Of 'The Merchant Of Death'

Del Quentin Wilber a the Washington Post reports on the story of the DEA's capture of a notorious arms dealer.

The DEA agents sat day after day in their smoke-filled command post in a Bucharest police station, checking their phones and e-mails for confirmation that one of the world’s most notorious arms dealers was coming.

Their sting was an elaborate one, a ruse involving a multimillion-dollar weapons deal between their informants posing as rebels in Colombia and Viktor Bout, a legendary arms trafficker known as “The Merchant of Death.”

You can read the rest of the story via the below link:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/crime/a-dea-agent-an-undercover-sting-and-the-merchant-of-death/2012/09/05/f0b59474-f306-11e1-892d-bc92fee603a7_story.html

Russia's 'Merchant Of Death' Set For Move To Supermaximum Security Prison In Colorado

The New York Post reports that Viktor Bout (seen in the above photo when he was brought to the United States by the DEA), is scheduled to be transfered to a supermaximum security prison.

Viktor Bout, the convicted Russian arms dealer known as the "Merchant of Death," is to be transferred from his New York jail to a supermaximum security prison in Colorado, his defense lawyer said Friday.

Bout, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison for conspiring to sell weapons to a Colombian terror group targeting Americans, is to move from the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn to the Florence Federal Correctional Facility in Colorado, his lawyer Andrei Garkusha told Russian news agency RIA Novosti.

You can read the rest of the story via the below link:

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/russia_merchant_jail_death_set_for_V8Ln6014psRCCAvvD0lM0K

You can also read about Viktor Bout's arrest and conviction via the below link:

http://pauldavisoncrime.blogspot.com/2012/04/merchant-of-death-international-arms.html

Merchant Of Death, International Arms Dealer Viktor Bout, Sentenced To 25 Years In Prison

DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart today announced that international arms dealer VIKTOR BOUT was sentenced today to 25 years in prison for conspiring to sell millions of dollars worth of weapons, including hundreds of surface-to-air missiles and over 20,000 AK-47s to the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (the “FARC”), a designated foreign terrorist organization based in Colombia. BOUT understood that the weapons would be used to kill Americans in Colombia. On November 2, 2011, BOUT was convicted on all four counts for which he was charged after a three-week jury trial before U.S. District Judge Shira A. Scheindlin.
*

“The crimes Viktor Bout committed represent the worst case scenario for modern law enforcement--the merger of criminal international narcotics cartels with their terrorism enablers,” Leonhart said. “But his sentencing today also reflects the best of modern international law enforcement-- sophisticated, determined, and coordinated. Thanks to the extraordinary efforts of criminal investigators and prosecutors in the United States, Thailand, Romania, Curacao and elsewhere, the ‘Merchant of Death’ has finally been held to account in a court of law for his years of profiteering from death and misery around the world.”

 *

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said: “Viktor Bout has been international arms trafficking enemy number one for many years, arming some of the most violent conflicts around the globe. He was finally brought to justice in an American court for agreeing to provide a staggering number of military grade weapons to an avowed terrorist organization committed to killing Americans. Today’s sentence is a fitting coda for this career arms trafficker of the most dangerous order.”

 *

According to the Indictment and evidence presented at the trial:

 *

Since the 1990s, BOUT has been an international weapons trafficker. As a result of his weapons trafficking activities in Liberia, the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control within the Department of Treasury placed him on the Specially Designated Nationals list in 2004. The designation prohibits any transactions between BOUT and U.S. nationals, and freezes any of his assets that are within the jurisdiction of the United States.

 *

Between November 2007 and March 2008, BOUT agreed to sell millions of dollars’ worth of weapons to the FARC, including 700-800 surface-to-air missiles (“SAMs”), over 20,000 AK-47 firearms, 10 million rounds of ammunition, five tons of C-4 plastic explosives, “ultralight” airplanes outfitted with grenade launchers, and unmanned aerial vehicles. BOUT agreed to sell the weapons to two confidential sources working with the DEA (the “CSs”), who represented that they were acquiring them for the FARC, with the specific understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack U.S. helicopters in Colombia.

 *

During a covertly recorded meeting in Thailand on March 6, 2008, BOUT stated to the CSs that he could arrange to airdrop the arms to the FARC in Colombia, and offered to sell them two cargo planes that could be used for arms deliveries. He also provided a map of South America and asked the CSs to show him American radar locations in Colombia. BOUT said that he understood that the CSs wanted the arms to use against American personnel in Colombia, and advised that, “we have the same enemy,” referring to the United States. He also stated that the FARC’s fight against the United States was also his fight and that he had been “fighting the United States…for ten to fifteen years.” During the meeting, he also offered to provide people to train the FARC in the use of the arms.

*

The evidence presented at trial included a recording of the March 6, 2008 meeting between BOUT, the CSs, his former associate Andrew Smulian, and others. Smulian was charged along with BOUT in March 2008 and pled guilty in July 2008. Smulian cooperated with the Government and, along with the two CSs, provided testimony at the trial. 

 *

In addition to his prison term, Judge Scheindlin sentenced BOUT to 5 years of supervised released and ordered him to forfeit $15 million.

*

BOUT was arrested in Thailand in March 2008 based on a Complaint filed in Manhattan federal court. He was subsequently charged in a four-count Indictment in April 2008 and extradited to the Southern District of New York in November 2010. At trial, he was convicted of (1) conspiring to kill U.S. nationals; (2) conspiring to kill U.S. officers and employees; (3) conspiring to acquire and export anti-aircraft missiles; and (4) conspiring to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

 *

Besides the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Southern District of New York, the Royal Thai Police was instrumental in the success of the Bout case. In addition, the Romanian National Police, the Romanian Prosecutor’s Office Attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice, the Korps Politie Curaçao of the Netherlands Antilles, and the Danish National Police Security Services assisted, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.

Russian Arms Dealer Known As "The Merchant of Death" Prefered Clients Who Murdered Americans

A Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) official stated that Viktor Bout, the Russian arms dealer who bragged that he was the "Merchant of Death," liked clients who'd use his weapons to murder Americans.

Bout was arrested in Thailand in a clever DEA sting two years ago. On November 16th, after two years of legal proceedings, Bout was extradited to the Southern District of New York from Thailand to stand trial on terrorism charges, the Justice Department announced.

Bout arrived on a DEA charter plane and was brought to a high-security prison in Manhattan, where he will be held pending trial.

Bout, who also goes by many other names, including “Boris,” “Victor Anatoliyevich Bout,” “Victor But,” “Viktor Budd,” “Viktor Butt,” “Viktor Bulakin,” and “Vadim Markovich Aminov,” is scheduled to be presented in Manhattan federal court tomorrow afternoon before U.S. District Judge Shira A. Scheindlin, to whom the case has been assigned.

“Viktor Bout has been indicted in the United States, but his alleged arms trafficking activity and support of armed conflicts in Africa has been a cause of concern around the world. His extradition is a victory for the rule of law worldwide,” Attorney General Eric Holder said. “Long considered one of the world’s most prolific arms traffickers, Mr. Bout will now appear in federal court in Manhattan to answer to charges of conspiring to sell millions of dollars worth of weapons to a terrorist organization for use in trying to kill Americans.”

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said, “Viktor Bout allegedly jumped at the chance to arm narco-terrorists bent on killing Americans with an arsenal of military grade weapons. Today’s successful extradition underscores our commitment to protect Americans on our own soil and throughout the world. The historic operation culminating in today’s extradition would not have been possible without the courageous and groundbreaking work of our partners at the DEA.”

“With Viktor Bout now behind bars in the United States, this defendant will finally face his most feared consequence: accountability for his alleged crimes in a court of law,” said Michele M. Leonhart, Acting Administrator of the DEA. “For more than a decade, Mr. Bout is alleged to have plied a deadly trade in surface-to-air missiles, land mines, bullets, death and destruction. Fortunately, with his arrest, extradition, and pending prosecution in the Southern District of New York, his last alleged attempt to deal in death means that he will finally face justice.”

According to the indictment and other court documents:

Until his arrest in March 2008, Bout was an alleged international weapons trafficker. To carry out his weapons trafficking business, Bout assembled a fleet of cargo airplanes capable of transporting weapons and military equipment to various parts of the world, including Africa, South America and the Middle East.

In 2004, as a result of his weapons trafficking activities in Liberia, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) placed Bout on the Specially Designated Nationals list, which prohibits any transactions between Bout and any U.S. nationals, and freezes any of Bout’s assets that are within the jurisdiction of the United States.

Between November 2007 and March 2008, Bout agreed to sell to the Colombian narco-terrorist organization, the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC), millions of dollars worth of weapons -- including surface-to-air missile systems; armor piercing rocket launchers; AK-47 firearms; millions of rounds of ammunition; Russian spare parts for rifles; anti-personnel land mines; C-4 plastic explosives; night-vision equipment; “ultralight” aircraft that could be outfitted with grenade launchers and missiles; and unmanned aerial vehicles.

The FARC is dedicated to the violent overthrow of the democratically-elected government of Colombia and is also the world’s largest supplier of cocaine. Bout agreed to sell the weapons to two confidential sources working with the DEA (the “CSs”), who represented that they were acquiring these weapons for the FARC, with the specific understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack U.S. helicopters in Colombia.

During a covertly-recorded meeting in Thailand on March 6, 2008, Bout stated to the CSs that he could arrange to airdrop the arms to the FARC in Colombia, and offered to sell two cargo planes to the FARC that could be used for arms deliveries. Bout also provided a map of South America, and asked the CSs to show him American radar locations in Colombia.

Bout indicated that he understood that the CSs wanted the arms for use against American personnel in Colombia, and advised that the United States was also his enemy, stating that the FARC’s fight against the United States was also his fight. During the meeting, Bout also offered to provide people to train the FARC in the use of the arms. Following this meeting, Bout was arrested by Thai law enforcement authorities.

The indictment charges Bout with four separate terrorism offenses:

Count one: conspiracy to kill U.S. nationals,

Count two: conspiracy to kill U.S. officers or employees,

Count three: conspiracy to acquire and use an anti-aircraft missile, and

Count four: conspiracy to provide material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization

If convicted of all counts, Bout faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.

This investigation was conducted by the DEA and its success is the result of international law enforcement cooperation efforts spanning the globe. The case is being handled by the Southern District of New York’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Anjan Sahni and Brendan R. McGuire are in charge of the prosecution. The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs and National Security Division, as well as the U.S. State Department, also provided substantial assistance.