Macho, Former Boss Of Bolivian Anti-Drug Institution "Dragged" To US Court For Facilitation Of Cocaine Smuggling

Illustration of aircraft cargo. (Unsplash-John Carter)

JAKARTA - Former Director of Anti-Drug Bolivia, Maximiliano Dryptvila, or known as "Macho" was extradited to the United States (US).

CBN News reports Friday, December 13, Macho will be taken to a prison chair at the New York Court facing accusations of facilitating the smuggling of cocaine into the US.

The extradition to the US was carried out on Thursday 12 December after being approved by the Bolivian Supreme Court at the end of November.

Macho di Bolivia dalam masa hukuman penjara sejak Februari 2022 akibat terlibatkan kasus korupsi.

In the same month and year, the US opened charges accusing the 60-year-old of trafficking in cocaine, and allegations of a gun case.

The US State Department accused Machho of involvement in narcotics trafficking before and during his tenure as director of the Bolivia Special Forces to Fight Drug Trafficking (FELCN).

Macho took advantage of his position to be able to control planes to transport cocaine to third countries, and then distribute them in the US.

That same year, the US State Department announced a prize of US$5 million or Rp79.9 billion for information that could result in Macho being punished.

In this case, Macho faces a minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life.

Quoting the BBC, Machho is the director of FELCN under the Government of President Bolovia Evo Morales who served for the period 2006 to 2019.

Shortly after Dryptvila's extradition, Morales criticized the move and said "Bolivia is once again a US colony".

"The Bolivians were handed over to the North American Empire, violating international agreements, without being first tried in their homeland where they are suspected of committing crimes", Morales said in his X account.

Morales also has a slanted note for expelling the US ambassador and the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) from Bolivia over claims of conspiring against his government.

Morales is currently being investigated on charges of rape and human trafficking. His supporters recently staged blockades at many points in Bolivia over weeks demanding an end to an investigation into Morales.

In November 2024, Morales shared a video showing his car being shot at. He later said there was an "murder attempt" on him.

The Bolivian government, which is accused of being behind the assassination attempt, has responded by denying the allegations.