FARC Dissident Leader Extradited to Florida for Cocaine Trafficking and Money Laundering Charges
Willinton Henao Gutierrez, the 45-year-old leader of Frente 33, part of the FARC dissident group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC-EP), was extradited from Colombia to South Florida on Thursday to face federal charges of international cocaine trafficking and money laundering, justice.gov reported. The case lands in the Southern District of Florida under case number 23-cr-20070, targeting an alleged conspiracy spanning Colombia, Miami-Dade County, and Broward County between September 2021 and August 2022.
Federal Indictment Details International Cocaine Operation
Court records detail an operation moving five kilograms or more of cocaine across international borders. Henao Gutierrez, also known as “El Mocho Olmedo,” allegedly coordinated with co-conspirators Jennifer Tapiero, Heyner Raul Sandoval Salazar, and Wilder Antonio Sanchez Duarte to transfer funds from the United States through foreign locations. Prosecutors state these financial transfers directly funded the manufacture, importation, sale, and distribution of controlled substances destined for American markets.
The four defendants face multiple federal counts. These include conspiring to import cocaine into the United States, conspiring to distribute cocaine with the knowledge that it would be unlawfully imported, conspiring to commit money laundering, and attempted money laundering.
Extradition Secured Through Joint U.S. and Colombian Law Enforcement
The formal arrest and extradition of Henao Gutierrez required coordination between American and Colombian authorities. The Justice Department’s Judicial Attaché in Bogotá and Office of International Affairs managed the extradition process. The Justice Department acknowledged assistance from the Cuerpo Técnico de Investigación of the Colombian Attorney General’s Office in executing the operation.
U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida and Special Agent in Charge Miles Aley of the Drug Enforcement Administration Miami Field Division announced the charges. Assistant U.S. Attorney Yara Dodin is prosecuting the case, with investigations led jointly by the DEA Miami Field Division and the DEA Bogotá Country Office. Additional court filings and public dockets remain accessible via the District Court for the Southern District of Florida electronic records system.
Henao Gutierrez Faces Mandatory Minimums and Life in Prison
Conviction on the drug trafficking conspiracy charges carries severe statutory penalties. Henao Gutierrez faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of up to life in federal prison for each of the two drug charges. Each count of money laundering carries a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
A federal district court judge will ultimately determine any prison sentence. That judicial determination follows a review of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors once the legal proceedings conclude.