US military pilot pleads guilty to drug smuggling

[UpInArms]

http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=domesticNews&storyid=2006-05-19T231111Z_01_N19273166_RTRUKOC_0_US-CRIME-PILOT.xml&src=rss

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. Air National Guard pilot and a crew member pleaded guilty on Friday to using military flights to smuggle millions of dollars worth of the drug Ecstasy into the United States, federal authorities said.

Capt. Franklin Rodriguez and Master Sgt. John Fong pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Manhattan to smuggling more than 200,000 Ecstasy pills in April 2005 on a flight from Germany to a National Guard Base in Newburgh, New York, the U.S. Attorney's office said.

Rodriguez, a pilot of the U.S. Air Force C-5A "Galaxy" cargo aircraft, and Fong, who was in charge of loading and unloading cargo, were arrested last year as part of a larger investigation into importation of Ecstasy, also called MDMA.

The men had been on an official mission to deliver training supplies to the republic of Georgia and on their return stopped in Germany, where they went to a hotel room and loaded packages of Ecstasy into their luggage, according to court documents.

<snip>

Both men admitted they also transported the same drug on previous flights, the federal criminal complaint said.

...more...

[saigon68]

1. This is Fresh

Kind of like the Coast Guard in the twenties loading speed boat outside the three mile limit with cases of Scotch for the bootleggers.

[DoYouEverWonder]

2. Wonder who

is financing these drug buys?

[bemildred]

3. Gee, who could have predicted this? nt

[happydreams]

4. They should only transport cocaine. You don't

want to compete with the Bushies in the drug business. :sarcasm: