After Twenty-Six Years Drug Trafficking Fugitive Appears for Initial Hearing in Miami

A fugitive, who had been wanted on federal drug trafficking charges for 26 years, had his initial appearance in U.S. Magistrate Court today in Miami, Florida.

Benjamin G. Greenberg, Acting United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida; and Adolphus P. Wright, Special Agent in Charge, United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Miami Field Division, made the announcement.

Gustavo Falcon, a/k/a “Taby,” 56, of Miami, had his initial appearance today in the Southern District of Florida before United States Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman, following his arrest on a federal warrant for a 1991 drug trafficking indictment. The parties stipulated to the defendant’s detention pending trial, with the right to revisit the ruling. The defendant’s next hearing is scheduled for May 11, 2007 in U.S. Magistrate Court.

“The passage of time does not lessen the government’s commitment to justice,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Benjamin Greenberg. “Those who are charged federally cannot evade the law. Today, after 26 years in hiding, Gustavo Falcon was brought forward to be held accountable in U.S. District Court for his criminal acts. The U.S. Attorney’s Office is grateful for the dedicated search efforts of the U.S. Marshals Service that led to the defendant’s apprehension.”

Adolphus P. Wright, DEA Special Agent in Charge of the Miami Field Division, said, “Even after 26 years of evading capture and prosecution, the DEA, along with our law enforcement partners, remain committed to following thru until justice is fully served on Falcon and others who violate the drug laws of the United States.”

On April 10, 1991, a federal grand jury sitting in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida returned a multi-count indictment charging Gustavo Falcon, together with lead defendants Augusto Falcon, also known as “Willie Falcon”, and Salvador Magluta, with participation in a conspiracy to possess with the intent to distribute cocaine valued at over $2.3 billion. An arrest warrant was issued for defendant Gustavo Falcon’s arrest at the time of the return of the indictment in 1991. Falcon had remained a fugitive until April 12, 2017, when members of the U.S. Marshals Service arrested him in Kissimmee, Florida. Gustavo Falcon is the last of the ten defendants named in the indictment to be arrested and prosecuted in federal court in Miami. The indictment charges Gustavo Falcon with conspiracy to possess cocaine with the intent to distribute.

Mr. Greenberg commended the investigative assistance of the DEA. Greenberg thanked the U.S. Marhals Service and the Miami-Dade Police Department for their assistance with the apprehension of Gustavo Falcon. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher J. Clark and Michael Patrick Sullivan.

An indictment is only an accusation and a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.