Defendant Arrives in Manhattan After Extradition from Estonia
Michael Filter, a German citizen, was extradited from Estonia and arrived in the Southern District of New York yesterday, making his first appearance in Manhattan federal court today. Filter is charged with conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States and conspiracy to distribute cocaine on board an aircraft.
According to the allegations contained in the Superseding Indictment, Filter was a member of a would-be ‘security team’ to international narcotics traffickers. Filter, along with co-defendants Joseph Manuel Hunter, Timothy Vamvakias, Dennis Gogel, and Slawomir Soborski, allegedly provided security and surveillance services to a narcotics trafficking organization. The group’s activities were uncovered by DEA confidential sources who posed as Colombian narcotics traffickers.
In meetings across Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, Hunter agreed to serve as the head of security for the CSs’ purported narcotics trafficking organization, assembling a ‘security team’ consisting of Filter, Vamvakias, Gogel, and Soborski. The defendants provided a variety of services to the CSs’ purported narcotics organization, including surveillance and security services.
Filter and his co-defendants allegedly conducted surveillance of a vessel in Thailand, provided security for a meeting in Mauritius, and conducted surveillance of a purported U.S.-registered aircraft in the Bahamas. In late June 2013, one of the CSs informed the defendants that the aircraft was to be loaded with 300 kilograms of cocaine to be shipped to New York.
Filter was arrested in Estonia in late September 2013, along with Soborski, and remained in the custody of Estonian authorities until his extradition today to the United States. Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated, ‘Now that he has arrived in the Southern District, Michael Filter can begin to answer for his role as an alleged member of a would-be ‘security team’ to international narcotics traffickers.’
DEA Deputy Administrator Thomas M. Harrigan added, ‘Michael Filter, who allegedly facilitated global drug trafficking and violence with associates such as Joseph Hunter, will now face justice in the United States. A former member of the German armed forces, Filter was a key player in a worldwide criminal enterprise that included associates charged in an elaborate murder-for-hire scheme.’
Filter, along with his co-defendants, face significant penalties if convicted. The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York and is part of the Department’s ongoing effort to disrupt and dismantle international narcotics trafficking organizations.
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Drug Trafficking
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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