Former Member Of Venezuelan National Assembly Charged With Narco-Terrorism, Drug Trafficking, And Weapons Offenses

Adel El Zabayar Allegedly Worked with the Former President of Venezuela Nicolás Maduro Moros and Other Prominent Venezuelan Officials to Distribute Cocaine and Weapons In Coordination with Terrorist Organizations

  Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Timothy J. Shea, Acting Administrator U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), announced today that ADEL EL ZABAYAR was charged in Manhattan federal court with participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy, a cocaine importation conspiracy, and related weapons offenses involving the use and possession of machineguns and destructive devices, all based on his support of the Venezuelan Cártel de Los Soles and designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (“FARC”), Hizballah, and Hamas.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said:  “As alleged, Adel El Zabayar was part of the unholy alliance of government, military, and FARC members using violence and corruption to further their narco-terrorist aims.  El Zabayar was allegedly a key part of the apparatus that conspired to export literally tons of cocaine into the U.S.  We further allege today, for the first time, that the Cártel de Los Soles sought to recruit terrorists from Hizballah and Hamas to assist in planning and carrying out attacks on the U.S., and that El Zabayar was instrumental as a go-between.  Allegedly, El Zabayar obtained from the Middle East a cargo planeload of military-grade weaponry.  With today’s charges, El Zabayar joins the rogues’ gallery of defendants we charged two months ago, and he faces the possibility of life in a U.S. prison if and when he is apprehended.”

DEA Acting Administrator Timothy J. Shea said:  “Today’s charges against Adel El Zabayar for trading arms for cocaine, and recruiting extremists, further demonstrates the corruption inside the Maduro regime.  The actions charged in the complaint show that Maduro’s administration operates with no regard for its own citizens, instead choosing to flood the United States with cocaine and other drugs while enriching itself.  As the layers of the Maduro regime are exposed, so is its immoral, unethical, and dangerous actions.”

According to the allegations contained in the Complaint charging EL ZABAYAR and in the related Superseding Indictment charging Maduro Moros and others in the Southern District of New York, which was unsealed on March 26, 2020[1]:

EL ZABAYAR is a member of the Cártel de Los Soles, or “Cartel of the Suns.”  The Cartel’s name refers to the sun insignias affixed to the uniforms of high-ranking Venezuelan military officials.  For more than two decades, Cartel members, including EL ZABAYAR and Maduro Moros, have abused the Venezuelan people and corrupted the legitimate institutions of Venezuela – including parts of the military, intelligence apparatus, legislature, and the judiciary – to facilitate the importation of tons of cocaine into the United States.  The Cartel sought not only to enrich its members and enhance their power, but also to “flood” the United States with cocaine and inflict the drug’s harmful and addictive effects on users in the United States. 

The Cártel de Los Soles has worked in coordination with designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations, including the FARC, Hizballah, and Hamas.  EL ZABAYAR, in particular, has, among other things, participated in weapons-for-cocaine negotiations with the FARC, obtained anti-tank rocket launchers from the Middle East for the FARC as partial payment for cocaine, and recruited terrorists from Hizballah and Hamas for the purpose of helping to plan and organize attacks against United States interests.    

For example, in or about 2014, EL ZABAYAR participated in several meetings with Diosdado Cabello Rondón, the president of Venezuela’s National Constituent Assembly and a member of the Cártel de Los Soles, at a military base in Caracas, Venezuela.  During the meetings, Cabello Rondón directed EL ZABAYAR to travel to the Middle East to obtain weapons and recruit members of Hizballah and Hamas to train at clandestine training camps located in Venezuela.  Cabello Rondón explained during the meeting, among other things, that the purpose of recruiting members of Hizballah and Hamas to train in Venezuela was to create a large terrorist cell capable of attacking United States interests on behalf of the Cártel de Los Soles.  EL ZABAYAR agreed.  Several months later, after EL ZABAYAR returned to Venezuela from the Middle East, EL ZABAYAR, Cabello Rondón, and others traveled together to a hangar controlled by Maduro Moros at the Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía, Venezuela, where EL ZABAYAR received a Lebanese cargo plane full of weapons, including rocket-propelled grenade launchers, AK-103s, and sniper rifles, that EL ZABAYAR had obtained while he was in the Middle East, as Cabello Rondón had directed.   

During the course of EL ZABAYAR’s activities on behalf of the Cártel de Los Soles, EL ZABAYAR also acted as a liaison between the Venezuelan government and Syrian president Bashar Hafez al-Assad, fought in Syria on behalf of Assad’s Hizballah-backed forces in or about 2013, and appeared in at least two interviews released by Al Manar, Hizballah’s terrorist-designated propaganda arm, in or about 2013 and 2014.

The Complaint charges EL ZABAYAR, 56, with: (1) participating in a narco-terrorism conspiracy, which carries a 20-year mandatory minimum sentence and a maximum of life; (2) conspiring to import cocaine into the United States, which carries a 10-year mandatory minimum sentence and a maximum of life; (3) using and carrying machine guns and destructive devices during and in relation to, and possessing machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of, the narco-terrorism and cocaine importation conspiracies, which carries a 30-year mandatory minimum sentence and a maximum of life; and (4) conspiring to use and carry machine guns and destructive devices during and in relation to, and to possess machine guns and destructive devices in furtherance of, the narco-terrorism and cocaine importation conspiracies, which carries a maximum sentence of life.  The potential mandatory minimum and maximum sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the DEA’s Special Operations Division Bilateral Investigations Unit and New York Strike Force.

The charges in the Complaint and Superseding Indictment S2 11 Cr. 205 are merely accusations, and EL ZABAYAR and the defendants named in the Superseding Indictment are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

 [1]  As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Complaint and the Superseding Indictment and the description of those documents set forth herein, constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.

On Zack Fink's Twitter Page - A Letter About a Packet From Jose Elias Sepulveda of Alleged Child Molestation, Drug Trafficking, Drug Use, and More About His Brother Senator Luis Sepulveda

This was found on Zack Fink's Twitter Page lesss than one hour ago.  

We could not check with Senator Sepulveda's office which is closed.

Zack Fink‏Verified acco  unt @ZackFinkNews  3 hours ago

NEW: This packet was sent to State Senators today about

⁦@LuisSepulvedaNY⁩ The Senator’s brother, who is incarcerated, accuses him of

unspeakable crimes including child molestation. Sepulveda called a closed door Senate conference today where

he denied the accusations.

Bronx Man Sentenced To More Than 12 Years In Prison For Facilitation Of Sex Trafficking, Drug Trafficking, Firearms, And Identity Theft Crimes

Kevin Pinnock Posted Advertisements Online for Women He Forced to Engage in Commercial Sex

  Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that KEVIN PINNOCK, a/k/a “Kev Savage,” a/k/a “Sav,” was sentenced yesterday to 12 years and three months in prison for using the internet to facilitate sex trafficking, possessing crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and possessing stolen identification documents.  PINNOCK previously pled guilty before United States District Judge Deborah A. Batts, who also imposed yesterday’s sentence.

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said:  “Kevin Pinnock used violence and coercion to force women to engage in commercial sex for his own profit.  He will now serve a substantial prison sentence for his crimes.  The prosecution of Kevin Pinnock is part of our determined effort to deliver justice to victims of sex trafficking and other forms of commercial exploitation, and to deter others from engaging in this predatory criminal conduct.”

In sentencing PINNOCK, Judge Batts said:  “The nature of the crimes in which the defendant was convicted” were “unspeakable, violent, gratuitous crimes he arrogantly committed on young women for his financial gain,” and that his theft of others’ identities “show[s] a shocking disregard on the part of the defendant for the havoc his crimes create for innocent victims in terms of their ruined credit and long-term ramifications on their financial lives.”

According to the Complaint, Indictment, Superseding Indictment, and other documents filed in the case, as well as statements made during court proceedings:

In 2015 and 2016, PINNOCK posted online advertisements to solicit customers to engage in commercial sex with women PINNOCK forced into prostitution by violence, abuse, and coercion.  PINNOCK retained virtually all of the profits from his sex trafficking business. 

Since at least November 2016, PINNOCK sold crack cocaine and possessed a loaded firearm, which had been stolen, in order to protect his drug dealing business.  He also possessed dozens of stolen identification cards – including driver’s licenses and Social Security cards – which he sold to other individuals who were engaged in identity theft and fraud.  Many of the identification cards had been obtained through the commission of robberies.

In addition to his prison term, PINNOCK, 22, of the Bronx, New York, was sentenced to three years of supervised release, a forfeiture money judgment in the amount of $15,000, and restitution in the amount of $100,000.

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives and United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations, and thanked the United States Secret Service, the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, the New York City Police Department, and the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance.

Bronx Man Pleads Guilty To Facilitation Of Sex Trafficking, Drug Trafficking, Firearms, And Identity Theft Charges

Kevin Pinnock Posted Advertisements Online for Women he Forced to Engage in Commercial Sex

  Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Ashan M. Benedict, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (“ATF”), and Angel M. Melendez, the Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Field Office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), announced today that KEVIN PINNOCK, a/k/a “Kev Savage,” a/k/a “Sav,” pled guilty before U.S. District Judge Deborah A. Batts to using the internet to facilitate sex trafficking, possessing crack cocaine with intent to distribute, possessing a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, and possessing stolen identification documents.

U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said:  “Kevin Pinnock used violence and coercion to force women to engage in commercial sex for his own profit.  With Kevin Pinnock’s guilty plea today, we seek to deliver justice to victims of sex trafficking and other forms of commercial exploitation and to deter others from engaging in this profoundly harmful criminal conduct.  Protecting the public from sex trafficking crimes remains a top priority for us and our law enforcement partners.”

ATF Special Agent-in-Charge Ashan M. Benedict said:  “Kevin Pinnock was allegedly involved in a multitude of criminal activities, which included using a firearm to protect his position on the street as a dealer in narcotics. Through the efforts of the Agents and Detectives of the ATF/ NYPD Joint Firearms Task Force (JFTF) working alongside Agents of HSI, Kevin Pinnock will be forced to contemplate his alleged crimes while serving a substantial sentence in prison. I would like to thank all of the law enforcement agencies that worked collaboratively to further this case.  I would also like to extend my gratitude to the United States Attorney’s Office for their work in prosecuting the case.”

HSI Special Agent-in-Charge Angel M. Melendez said:  “This man admitted his guilt in forcing women to perform sexual acts by threatening violence and abuse.  Pinnock was in for making a profit any way he can, with his crimes becoming more brazen; from robbery and ID theft to drug dealing and sex trafficking.  The plea today is only the beginning for Pinnock, who will now need to face the consequences of this actions.”

According to the Complaint, Indictment, Superseding Indictment, and other documents filed in the case, as well as statements made during PINNOCK’s plea proceedings:

In 2015 and 2016, PINNOCK posted online advertisements to solicit customers to engage in commercial sex with women PINNOCK forced into prostitution by violence, abuse, and coercion.  PINNOCK retained virtually all of the profits from his sex trafficking business. 

In at least November 2016, PINNOCK sold crack cocaine and possessed a loaded firearm, which had been stolen, in order to protect his drug dealing business.  He also possessed dozens of stolen identification cards – including driver’s licenses and Social Security cards – which he sold to other individuals who were engaged in identity theft and fraud.  Many of the identification cards had been obtained through the commission of robberies.

PINNOCK, 22, of the Bronx, New York, was arrested on January 5, 2017, in the Bronx, and has been in federal custody since.  PINNOCK pled guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute cocaine base, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison; one count of possession of a firearm in furtherance of drug trafficking, which carries a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison to be imposed consecutively to any other sentence and a maximum sentence of life in prison; possession with intent to use or transfer five or more identification documents or authentication features, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison; aggravated identity theft, which requires a two-year prison term to be imposed consecutively to any other sentence; and use of interstate commerce to promote unlawful activity, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.  The maximum potential sentences are prescribed by Congress and are provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the judge.

PINNOCK is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Batts on September 23, 2018.

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding investigative work of the ATF and HSI, and thanked the United States Secret Service, the Social Security Administration’s Office of the Inspector General, the New York City Police Department, and the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office for their assistance.