NEW YORK (Reuters) - A former heavyweight boxer from Montenegro was charged by the U.S. Department of Justice on Monday with trafficking in 22 tons of cocaine worth over $1 billion, most of which was part of 1 of the largest cocaine seizures in American history.
Goran Gogic, 43, was arrested on Sunday night while trying to board a flight to Zurich from Miami International Airport, after being indicted by a grand jury in New York.
Prosecutors charged Gogic with 3 counts of violating the federal Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act & 1 count of conspiracy. Each count carries a mandatory minimum 10-year prison term & possible life sentence.
The charges stem from the seizures of 22 tons of cocaine from 3 commercial cargo ships in 2019, including 19.8 tons from the MSC Gayane while it was docked at Philadelphia's Packer Avenue Marine Terminal.
Prosecutors said the conspirators transported cocaine to Europe from Colombia through American ports, using cranes & nets at night to hoist drugs onto cargo ships from approaching speedboats along the ships' routes.
The complex operation required knowledge of each ship's crew, route & location data & that there was room to store drugs in shipping containers that were already aboard.
Gogic oversaw the logistics, coordinating with crew members, Colombian traffickers & European dockworkers to benefit himself & his Balkan-based cartels.
At least 8 Gayane crew members have pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges.
Gogic was a boxer from 2001 to 2012, winning 21 bouts & losing 4 with 2 draws.
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