The extradition of Wisam Nagib Kherfan Okde, accused of being the leader of a sophisticated international network dedicated to drug trafficking, money laundering and arms trafficking, was endorsed by the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice.

The magistrates gave a favorable opinion by considering the elements sent by a United States court that requires the Colombian citizen to be solid.

The file contains statements from DEA agents and federal prosecutors describing Kherfan as the Colombian liaison for a global money laundering network based in Lebanon. Within the US indictment, he is also attributed high-level contacts with the Syrian regime of Bashar al Assad, which would have allowed military weapons to be diverted to illegal groups in Colombia.

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“From approximately April 2024 to the present, Kherfan (…) agreed to supply military-grade weapons diverted from the Assad regime in Syria to the ELN in exchange for hundreds of kilograms of cocaine,” the accusation states.

According to the documents, Kherfan would have held direct meetings with members of the ELN, including an inspector of the group, to negotiate a shipment of 500 kilos of drugs sent to the port of Latakia (Syria) in a camouflaged fruit container.

In exchange, the guerrilla would have received weapons from the Syrian regime, in a scheme that combined drug trafficking, international routes and money laundering operations.

The Supreme Court concluded that Kherfan “He allegedly acted as an intermediary in arms transactions between different clients, including the ELN, to whom he provided laundering services.”

With the Court’s decision, extradition remains in the hands of the President of the Republic, who must sign the final resolution. The United States requires him to face charges of international drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracy.

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