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Peter Dimitrov Mirchev, a Bulgarian national, has been extradited from Spain to Alexandria, Virginia, to face charges of conspiring to distribute cocaine and possess firearms, including machineguns and destructive devices, in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime. Mirchev, along with co-conspirators from Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda, allegedly plotted to supply Mexican drug cartels, specifically the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), with military-grade weaponry. The suspected arms deals began as early as September 2022.
The CJNG, one of Mexico’s most violent and prolific transnational criminal organizations, was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization in February 2025. The defendants allegedly believed the cartel intended to use the weapons to further their illegal trafficking of large shipments of cocaine into the United States. Mirchev allegedly agreed to arrange and participate in the illegal arms transactions, avoiding detection by international and U.S. law enforcement.
Mirchev recruited co-conspirator Elisha Odhiambo Asumo to obtain an End-User Certificate (EUC) from a nation that would falsely claim a different end-user for the weapons. Asumo and another co-conspirator, Subiro Osmund Mwapinga, allegedly obtained an EUC from the United Republic of Tanzania authorizing the importation of AK-47s.
The case involves the FBI, DEA, and ATF, and highlights the global nature of arms trafficking and its connection to drug cartels. Mirchev’s extradition from Spain marks a significant step in the prosecution of transnational arms traffickers.