Haji Bagcho Sherzai
Born1954 (age 69–70)
Nangarhar Province, Afghanistan
NationalityAfghan
Other namesHaji Bagh Chagul, Haji Bagcho
CitizenshipAfghanistan
Years active1990s–June 2009 [1][2](or more than £160,000,000[3])
Known forDrug trafficking
Criminal statusReleased
ChildrenSucha Gul, eldest son[4]
RelativesKhadi Gul, younger brother[5]

Haji Bagcho Sherzai, also known as Haji Bagh Chagul or Haji Bagcho (born 1954), is a convicted drug trafficker from Afghanistan. He is accused by the United States of having ties with the Taliban. He was convicted on March 13, 2012, by a jury in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia of conspiracy, distribution of heroin for importation into the United States and narco-terrorism.

It was alleged that Bagcho exported heroin to more than twenty different countries, including the United States. He faced a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years and a maximum of life in prison. On June 12, 2012, a sentencing hearing was scheduled before Ellen Segal Huvelle in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.[6][7][8][9]

He is believed to have lived in the Marco village in Nangahar Province. He also owned a compound in Hayatabad, outside of Peshawar, Pakistan.[4] He is married and has several children. His eldest son is believed to be named Sucha Gul.

In June 2009, Baghcho was arrested in Afghanistan and extradited to the US.[1][2][10] Khadi Gul, his younger brother, denied that Bagcho had ever provided money to the Taliban.[3][5]

Bagcho, who has been involved in the drug trafficking business since at least the 1990s, was ordered to forfeit $254,203,032 (more than £160,000,000).[6][7][8][1][2][3]

With the help of cooperating witnesses, including Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF), and ledgers which were found during searches of his house, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) prepared a major criminal case. One ledger, cataloguing Bagcho's activities during 2006, reflected heroin transactions of more than 123,000 kilograms, worth more than $250 million.[9][1][11]

Bagcho used a portion of his drug proceeds to fund the Taliban governor of Nangarhar Province and two Taliban commanders responsible for insurgent activity in eastern Afghanistan with cash, weapons and other supplies so that they could continue their "jihad" against western troops and the Afghan government.[6][7][8][9][1][2][11]

Based on heroin production statistics[12] compiled by the United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime, in 2006, Bagcho's activities accounted for approximately 20% of the world's total production for that year.[6][7][8][1][2]

As of June 2012, Bagcho is the second person to be convicted under the US narco-terrorism statute.[6][3] He was released on December 16, 2022.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Afghan heroin kingpin convicted in U.S. court". CBS News. March 14, 2012. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Haji Bagcho, 70, Afghan drug lord gets life in US prison". Chengdu TV News. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d "Taliban-funding Afghan drug lord jailed for life in US". BBC World News. June 12, 2012. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  4. ^ a b "Afghan Biographies". Who is who in Afghanistan. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  5. ^ a b "Drug lord who funded Taliban in court". The National Post. June 11, 2012. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  6. ^ a b c d e TUCKER, ERIC (June 12, 2012). "Afghan heroin trafficker gets life in US prison". Associated Press. Archived from the original on 14 May 2013. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  7. ^ a b c d "Haji Bagcho Sentenced To Life in Prison on Narco-Terrorism, Drug Trafficking Charges - Funded Taliban, Responsible for Almost 20 Percent of World's Heroin Production, More Than a Quarter-Billion in Drug Proceeds, Property Forfeited". The Aiken Leader. Archived from the original on 2012-06-15. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  8. ^ a b c d "Haji Bagcho Sentenced to Life in Prison on Trafficking/Narco-Terrorism Charges". Surfky News. Archived from the original on 2014-01-16. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  9. ^ a b c "Haji Bagcho Convicted by Federal Jury in Washington, D.C., on Drug Trafficking and Narco-terrorism Charges - Afghan National Trafficked More Than 123,000 Kilograms of Heroin in 2006". US Department of Justice. 13 March 2012. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  10. ^ Frieden, Terry (2009-06-29). "Reputed Afghan drug lord held for trial in U.S." CNN. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  11. ^ a b Foster, Zachary (23 March 2012). "Haji Bagcho, One of World's Largest Heroin Traffickers, Convicted on Drug Trafficking, Narco-Terrorism Charges". War on Terrorism Online. Retrieved 7 June 2012.
  12. ^ "2007 WORLD DRUG REPORT" (PDF). United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime. Retrieved 2012-07-26.
  13. ^ "Inmate Locator".
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