Kenya extradited an international drug fugitive, Badru Abdul Aziz Saleh, for trafficking in narcotics.
According to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI), Saleh was last night extradited to the United States to face trial aboard Kenya Airways destined for New York.
“Badru Abdul Aziz Saleh, an international fugitive wanted in the United States for trafficking in narcotics was last night extradited to the United States to face trial,” said DCI.
The extradition of the 46-year-old suspect follows his arrest by DCI detectives on May, 31, after a cash reward of Ksh.117.2 million (US$.1,000,000) was offered by the U.S government for information regarding his whereabouts.
According to a U.S. federal indictment, in or about August 2018 through about May 2019, Saleh & others who were identified during a wildlife trafficking investigation conspired to distribute at least 10 kilograms of heroin to a buyer located in New York.
After several meetings, Saleh and his co-conspirators delivered the first kilogram of heroin to a buyer in Nairobi.
According to the indictment, in June 2019, Saleh fled from law enforcement, along with his co-conspirators, before completing the remaining heroin transaction.
He was subsequently arrested by DCI detectives for drug trafficking in Kenya on July 11, 2019 and arraigned at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport Law Courts, a day after.
He was released on Ksh.200,000 bail but disappeared and became a fugitive, with a warrant for his arrest being issued. In June 2021, following a joint investigation of the U.S.
Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), a federal grand jury in the Southern District of New York returned an indictment charging Saleh and other coconspirators with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment.
