Arrested in Antioquia: 'Ash', Australian-Iranian drug trafficking boss wanted by INTERPOL
The National Police arrested Arash Ebrahimi Far, alias 'Ash', in Copacabana, Antioquia, with an INTERPOL Red Notice for drug trafficking and money laundering.
Arrest in Copacabana hospital ends six years in hiding in Colombia
The National Police of Colombia detained Australian-Iranian citizen Arash Ebrahimi Far, known in criminal circles as alias 'Ash', in the municipality of Copacabana, Antioquia, who has been designated by Australian judicial authorities as a high-value target for drug trafficking and money laundering offences. According to policia.gov.co, the operation was carried out by the Directorate of Criminal Investigation and INTERPOL (DIJIN) with the support of the Australian Federal Police (AFP).
The operation was executed at the facilities of Copacabana municipality's hospital. Investigators intercepted alias 'Ash' at the moment when he allegedly attempted to leave the medical centre to evade authorities. The detained suspect was receiving medical care for a gunshot wound sustained days earlier, under circumstances that competent authorities are still verifying.
Ebrahimi Far had an INTERPOL Red Notice and allegedly held leadership functions within a transnational criminal organisation with the capacity to coordinate the trafficking of large quantities of narcotics, the management of economically illicit resources, and access to illegal weapons. The criminal structure, according to the international file, used encrypted communication platforms to coordinate its activities and evade controls by security and intelligence agencies.
The investigations further established that the Australian-Iranian citizen had remained hidden in Colombia since December 2018. From Colombian territory, he allegedly continued to orchestrate and direct criminal operations of international scope.
Ebrahimi Far was placed at the disposal of the International Affairs Directorate of the Office of the Attorney General of the Nation, the entity responsible for advancing the administrative and judicial procedures to materialise his formal extradition to Australian authorities.
Source: Google News CO — Crime