Five foreigners involved in drug trafficking extradited from Thailand

[HerbalEd]

Beside murderers, drug dealers get the most respect in prisons worldwide. Some of the activities that some of the poster suggest should happen to them won't. They are a valuable commodity in the Penal System. They will be protected from the moment the walk in and not from people paid on the outside for protection.

People who run the joint will see that they are well looked after.

The problems are that these criminals become so powerful that the other prison inmates will show them a lot of respect and give them a wide berth mostly out of fear, considering that they may have many contacts, both on the inside and on the outside and would snuff out a human life like an insect without hesitation. For some of these scum being in prison is like placing them into their natural environment.

Very scary these people.

Looks like you watch a lot of TV.

[NeverSure]

Has everyone read the unsealed indictment in post 21?

Hunter is accused of being a contract killer, participating in "arranging" the deaths of multiple persons since 2004. Forget the drug part.

Unless he plea bargains, he will get a fair trial before a random citizen jury. The citizen jury is the most powerful part of the system, because if the jury wants to for any reason, it can declare "not guilty" and there's nothing anyone can do about it. The accused walks free. If he has no assets in the US, he will be provided an attorney, and will be essentially immune from any further civil suits by family members of the deceased because you can't get blood from a stone.

If on the other hand he is found guilty, or plea bargains, there's no way he's going to a minimum security facility which is reserved for those who are not considered a danger, such as white collar criminals etc. Contract killers do hard time and unless he plea bargains, he could get the death penalty.

This is a federal issue in the federal system and there is no parole in that system. If he is sentenced for a specific time such as life, that's what he will do.

The accusations are spelled out in the indictment, and the burden of proof "beyond a reasonable doubt" to a citizen jury is all on the accusers.

[thatswhatuthought]

This is strange. I say pics of Joseph Manuel Hunter getting escorted onto a plane to the U.S.A. over a month ago. If I remember correctly Thaivisa posted an article stating the "fact".

But then again TIT and TITV.

[thatswhatuthought]

Webfact,

You really like to post articles that contradict each other. Is this British Irony, are you just trying to be non-biased with what you post, or are you just trying to stir the pot?

[thatswhatuthought]

Webfact,

You really like to post articles that contradict each other. Is this British Irony, are you just trying to be non-biased with what you post, or are you just trying to stir the pot?

Or do you just like The Nation newspaper?

[EricBerg]

When they arrive in USA there will FAT lady singing for them. Hope they bring a lot of Vaseline with them, because the folks in American prisons are a lot bigger then thai prisoners

Just how would you know? Are you some sort of prison penis size expert?

Odd hobby! I'd recommend taking up fishing instead.....

Well, it is true that American state prisons (penitentiaries) are very rough--probably cleaner than the Thai ones, but with scarier people. Federal jails can vary. I would probably be more scared of a jail in the US than in Thailand, although I wouldn't want to spend time in either system.

I am glad I am not speaking from personal experience, but I am speaking from the experience of a guy I worked with. He was a young kid, did something stupid (not violent at all) and ended up in a state penitentiary. Let your imagination take care of the rest of what he told me.

Did he tell you about the birds and the bees?

[webfact]

Alleged contract killer's accomplices, arrested in Phuket, extradited from Thailand
Phuket Gazette -

Accomplices of Phuket hitman Joseph ‘Rambo’ Hunter (pictured) were extradited to the United States. Photo: Reuters

PHUKET: Five men arrested in Phuket in the same operation that snared the alleged contract killer and US drug dealer Joseph "Rambo" Hunter were extradited to the United States today.

Escorted by armed police commandos, Britons Philip David Shackels and Scott Alan Stammer; Slovakian Alexander Lnu; Filipino Allan Kelly Perata; and Taiwanese Ye Tiong Tan Lim were taken from Bangkok’s Khlong Prem Prison to Don Mueang International Airport at 10am to board a plane to the US.

The five foreigners were arrested in Phuket along with Mr Hunter, a former US Navy Special Forces officer who allegedly ran one of the world’s biggest drug networks.

Mr Hunter was arrested at his home in Kathu on September 25 .

Testifying in a New Jersey District Court on September 28, Mr Hunter entered a plea of not guilty.

Manhattan US Attorney Preet Bharara, however, said in a statement, “The bone-chilling allegations in today’s indictment read like they were ripped from the pages of a Tom Clancy novel.

“The charges tell a tale of an international band of mercenary marksmen who enlisted their elite military training to serve as hired guns for evil ends,” he said

Source: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket_news/2013/Alleged-contract-killer-s-accomplices-arrested-in-Phuket-extradited-from-Thailand-22828.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2012-11-19

[jacko45k]

I prefer the goat cheese shoplifter in Pattaya story...that was a real triumph for the police

Or the big bust a few years ago of the crazy German who opened a can of sardines and put them back on the shelf!!!!

I actually knew the guy and he was far from crazy and said he picked up a can he saw that was already opened out of curiosity and put it back.

What a travesty of justice..... but a better story for the local rag!

Who can I think of who I see opening packaged items and smelling them in supermarkets.... not Fritz or Hans!

Edited November 19, 2013 by jacko45k

[ericthai]

What a complicated case, and should be interesting to follow. Five defendants, five lawyers, requests for separate trials, teams of attorneys on all sides, requests for change of venue, requests for extradition to the various defendants various home countries. Hunter is obviously the big catch, the others bit players.

What is really interesting is the speed at which the extraditions have taken place. When the much higher profile Viktor Bout was apprehended, it took much longer for the long arm of US law to get him shackled and on the plane. Of course, in that case there was counter-pressure from Russia. In the end, though, it seems that what the long arm of US "Justice" wants, it gets, from Thailand, at least.

This will play out over many months, if not years. Lawyers in the US are lined up, salivating at the chance to defend Mr. Hunter, just to get all that face time in the mass media.

Viktor took along time as he was fighting extradition to the USA. Apparently these guys have not tried to fight their extradition to the USA.

[Benmart]

"Hunter, who served in the US Naval Special Warfare Development Group or SEAL........."

In the earlier reports after his arrest in september,he was an US Army veteran with sniper training and now suddenly he`s a Navy SEAL ?? A BIG difference

I subscribe to the theory that news is not always fact. Sometimes the story changes like the weather.

[Benmart]

This is strange. I say pics of Joseph Manuel Hunter getting escorted onto a plane to the U.S.A. over a month ago. If I remember correctly Thaivisa posted an article stating the "fact".

But then again TIT and TITV.

This is not unique to Thailand. The world is full of contradictions and I gave up hoping for perfection or accuracy years ago. I read, I digest and I discard the chaf as best as I can determine.

[khunron13]

Hmmm...according to the NY District Attorney's office, Hunter "served as a sniper instructor and a senior drill sergeant". Nice job, The Nation

http://www.justice.gov/usao/nys/pressreleases/September13/HunteretalArrestsPR.php

[Benmart]

When they arrive in USA there will FAT lady singing for them. Hope they bring a lot of Vaseline with them, because the folks in American prisons are a lot bigger then thai prisoners

Always fascinating to observe the obsession many TV members has in the gay sexual practises in prisons around the world !!!

You may be confusing cosentual male to male sex (Gay?) with male to male sexual assault, such as frequently happens in prisons. Gay is a lifestyle decision in which a person identifies with. In prison, male to male sex is often a survival necessity and the victim can still identify themselves as being heterosexual.

I too am fascinated by all fascination.

Just my opinion and experience.

Edited November 20, 2013 by Benmart

[hawker9000]

It's probably a case of handing over whoever the US asks for.

Lol. Or maybe just simple compliance with an existing extradition agreement...

So why didn't the US government extradite Mr. Shinawatha Thaksin back to Thailand, also in compliance with the same existing Treaty?

I know it was discussed in connection with a CSCE meeting Thaksin was requested to attend back in Dec 2010, but did the thai government ever actually issue a formal extradition request for him? (Even if they had, 'don't know which crimes the extradition treaty between Thailand and the US does and doesn't cover.) Kind of a reach to compare the extradition of drug gang members with the TS situation, isn't it?

No stretch at all. Criminal charges are criminal charges. TS was charged and indicted by a Thai court, for several felonies, including treason. Check the facts, before coming to this forum with those typical "know-it-all" farang opinions.

Well then, genius. Answer the question.

[theslime]

GOOD RIDDANCE to the SCUM BAGS.

Put them where they belong.

FOR A LONG TIME.

Pity they could not be tried in China.

That would be the end of them then.

No time for crims that sell drugs and ruin the lives of people, especially the young.

I agree with you but how do we stop the legal drug pushers, alcohol and cig producers?

[rebelplatoon]

Do NOT go by start and pick up 25.000. Do NOT let them back in. And for Chrissakes: Do NOT pick up the soap in the showers!

[trevor4]

Well are they international drug dealers, international hitmen, both, or

They are both.

Additionally, here's an interesting, previously unreported, wrinkle to the story regarding the source, quantity, and purity of the drugs they were trafficking...

Asian drug gang busted in alleged plot to smuggle North Korean meth into US

NBC News - 6 hours ago

Federal authorities have arrested and extradited five members of an alleged Asian drug ring in Thailand and charged them with conspiring to smuggled 100 kilos of North Korean methamphetamine into the U.S. The bust was connected to the arrest in September of a former U.S. Army sharpshooter, a federal law enforcement source told NBC News.

The five defendants, who hail from the U.K., China, the Philippines and Thailand, were arrested in Thailand in September, arrived in New York Tuesday night and were scheduled to appear in a Manhattan courtroom Wednesday.

For fair use, it continues:

http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/20/21552484-asian-drug-gang-busted-in-alleged-plot-to-smuggle-north-korean-meth-into-us

[trevor4]

5 extradited in plot to import North Korean meth

Washington Post - ‎1 hour ago‎

Five men have been charged with conspiracy to import 100 kilograms of nearly pure North Korean-produced methamphetamine into the United States, and federal officials said the case illustrates the emergence of North Korea as a player in the global drug trade.

The men were part of a sprawling international drug trafficking ring led by a former American soldier, Joseph Manuel Hunter, who has separately been charged with conspiring to murder a Drug Enforcement Administration agent and with importing cocaine into the United States, federal officials said.

more:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/5-extradited-in-plot-to-import-north-korean-meth-to-us/2013/11/20/4a2a3840-5222-11e3-9e2c-e1d01116fd98_story.html

[hyperdimension]

the dealers never really get to see the damage they do to customers and their families.

I'm sure alcohol and tobacco dealers and manufacturers are quite aware of the damage their products cause to people and society.

[hawker9000]

It's probably a case of handing over whoever the US asks for.

Lol. Or maybe just simple compliance with an existing extradition agreement...

So why didn't the US government extradite Mr. Shinawatha Thaksin back to Thailand, also in compliance with the same existing Treaty?

I know it was discussed in connection with a CSCE meeting Thaksin was requested to attend back in Dec 2010, but did the thai government ever actually issue a formal extradition request for him? (Even if they had, 'don't know which crimes the extradition treaty between Thailand and the US does and doesn't cover.) Kind of a reach to compare the extradition of drug gang members with the TS situation, isn't it?

No stretch at all. Criminal charges are criminal charges. TS was charged and indicted by a Thai court, for several felonies, including treason. Check the facts, before coming to this forum with those typical "know-it-all" farang opinions.

Well then, genius. Answer the question.

Silence? Nothing to say? Yeah, that's what I thought...