RABAT, MAR 30: /DNA/ – The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia highlights the operational support provided by the General Directorate of National Security and Territorial Surveillance of Morocco (DGSN-DGST) in two separate investigations targeting an arms trafficking network linked to Latin American cartels and a narco-terrorism operation relying on clandestine financial flows. Court documents describe transnational cooperation involving the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), several African and European agencies, and Moroccan authorities, which led to key arrests and subsequent extraditions to the United States.

The first statement indicates that a Bulgarian arms trafficker, Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, appeared before a federal court after his extradition from Spain, while Kenyan national Elisha Odhiambo Asumo was transferred from Morocco on March 11, 2026, before appearing before a federal judge the following day. The prosecution specifies that the defendants “conspired to illegally supply military-grade weapons to Mexican drug cartels, and in particular to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico’s most violent and prolific transnational criminal organizations“.

According to the indictment, this network planned to deliver machine guns, rocket launchers, grenades, sniper rifles, anti-personnel mines, and anti-aircraft systems. Investigators state that the defendants “believed the cartel intended to use these weapons to facilitate the illegal trafficking of large shipments of cocaine into the United States .” Clandestine meetings held with individuals presented as representatives of the cartel allegedly facilitated negotiations for arms deals designed to circumvent international controls.

Court documents allege that Mirchev recruited the Kenyan national to obtain a forged end-user certificate. The federal prosecutor’s office maintains that the accomplices “obtained a certificate authorizing the importation of AK-47s before exporting 50 automatic assault rifles from Bulgaria with the intention that the weapons would actually be received by the cartel .” The defendants then allegedly continued discussions to supply larger systems, including surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft drones, and ZU-23 batteries.

The statement further specifies that the arrests were carried out simultaneously in several countries. Spanish authorities apprehended Mirchev in Madrid, while Moroccan services arrested Asumo in Casablanca. A Tanzanian national was apprehended in Accra, Ghana, and then extradited to the United States. The prosecutor’s office notes that the investigation was conducted by the DEA’s Bilateral Investigations Unit with the support of international partners, including the Moroccan government, specifically the General Directorate of National Security and the General Directorate of Territorial Surveillance.

Coordinated arrests in an arms trafficking case

The case details a criminal agreement dating back to September 2022, during which several intermediaries allegedly arranged the sale of military-grade weapons to a Mexican cartel. Discussions reportedly involved a list of armaments valued at tens of millions of euros. Prosecutors state that the defendants “continued to conspire to supply even more weaponry to drug cartels, potentially including surface-to-air missiles and other anti-aircraft systems “.

Federal investigators also point out that the Bulgarian arms dealer was allegedly involved in transactions linked to Viktor Bout, who was convicted of terrorist conspiracy and arms trafficking. The prosecution notes that each defendant faces a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years in prison and a potential sentence of life imprisonment. U.S. authorities add that the actual sentences will be determined by a federal judge after reviewing applicable guidelines.

In this case, US authorities attribute a decisive role to Moroccan services in the arrest of the Kenyan national, apprehended in Morocco before his extradition to the United States on March 11, 2026. The statement explicitly mentions cooperation with the Moroccan government, including the DGSN and the DGST, alongside Spanish, Ghanaian authorities and other partners involved in the operation.

Lebanese network and drug trafficking financial transfers

The second statement released by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia describes the conviction of a Lebanese-Syrian dual national for narco-terrorist conspiracy and providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization. The prosecution alleges that the defendant, Antoine Kassis, a drug trafficker based in Lebanon, used his political connections to arrange an arms-for-cocaine exchange for armed groups. The prosecution states that Kassis “used his high-level access to the Syrian government to traffic cocaine and weapons, while laundering the proceeds through a Colombian accomplice“.

According to evidence presented at trial, the defendant allegedly negotiated the delivery of weapons from military stockpiles in exchange for hundreds of kilograms of cocaine. U.S. authorities assert that he “intended to oversee the distribution of the cocaine in the Middle East while his accomplices laundered the proceeds on his behalf ” Evidence examined by the jury indicates that members of the network moved nearly one hundred million dollars in less than eighteen months on behalf of criminal organizations.

The statement also mentions a financial transfer operation carried out in August 2024 as part of a controlled delivery coordinated with the DEA. Judicial authorities specify that the investigation involved several regional offices of the American agency, including those in Rabat, Nairobi, Accra, Madrid, and Bogotá. Moroccan services are cited among the partners who provided significant assistance to the investigation. The text indicates that the General Directorate of National Security contributed to the investigations alongside Ghanaian, Kenyan, and Colombian authorities.

Federal prosecutors emphasize that this case relies on extensive international cooperation, involving the DEA’s Special Operations Division and the Justice Department’s Bureau of International Affairs. The statement specifies that partner authorities “provided significant assistance to the investigation, including Morocco’s General Directorate of National Security .” The federal court is scheduled to hand down the sentence on July 2, 2026, with the defendant facing a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years in prison and a potential sentence of life imprisonment.