A cocaine trafficking trial in U.S. federal court is underway after four foreign nationals, previously convicted in Guinea-Bissau, were extradited to face additional charges tied to a massive transatlantic smuggling ring. The men were flown to the United States under a security agreement following their January convictions in West Africa for trafficking 2.63 metric tons of cocaine.
The U.S. Department of Justice confirmed the transfer on Friday, identifying the suspects as Ramon Manriquez Castillo—a dual citizen of the U.S. and Mexico—Mexican national Edgar Rodriguez Ruano, Ecuadorian Fernando Javier Escobar Tito, and Colombian Anderson Jair Gamboa Nieto.
According to U.S. prosecutors, the men conspired to distribute cocaine through Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Guinea-Bissau between November 2023 and September 2024.
All four appeared in court in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on Thursday. They were charged with distributing large quantities of cocaine using a U.S.-registered aircraft that reportedly carried an American citizen on board. If convicted, they face federal prison terms ranging from 10 years to life.
The group had been sentenced to 17 years each by a Guinea-Bissau court following “Operation Landing,” a historic anti-drug operation last September. Authorities there also convicted Brazilian national Marlos Balcacar, who later died in Bissau’s Simao Mendes Hospital on March 3.
Their transfer to the United States was arranged at the request of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which had held several meetings with Bissau-Guinean officials since January. A government source told Reuters that the DEA cited security concerns and Guinea-Bissau’s lack of high-security detention facilities.
President Umaro Cissoko Embalo confirmed the extradition, emphasizing that it reflects his administration’s break from the country’s past. “The reason for the transfer of the traffickers is that Guinea-Bissau does not have high-security prisons,” Embalo said. “Moreover, this transfer is proof that Guinea-Bissau is no longer a narco state.”
Although Guinea-Bissau does not maintain a formal extradition treaty with the United States, Embalo stated that his government would cooperate with international requests—even involving Bissau-Guinean citizens.
The original drug bust in September was one of the largest in the country’s history. Police seized 78 bales of cocaine, weighing a total of 2.63 metric tons, from a Gulfstream IV aircraft that arrived at Bissau’s main airport from Venezuela. Authorities suspect the shipment was intended for transport onward to Europe, a common route used by traffickers leveraging West Africa as a transit hub.
The cocaine trafficking trial in U.S. not only highlights the global scale of narcotics operations but also signals a new era of cooperation between the United States and Guinea-Bissau in confronting international drug crime.
19 April 2025
