U.S. Can Seize Lehder Property
Jurors in the case of Carlos Lehder Rivas decided today that the government can confiscate millions of dollars in real estate on a Bahamian island, as well as several planes and other items owned by the convicted drug dealer.
“The island is wrecked. It is trashed. But that is not to say it would not be of some future value,” U.S. Atty. Robert Merkle said. The same jury had found the 38-year-old Colombian guilty on all 11 drug-trafficking counts Thursday after seven days of deliberations. Co-defendant Jack Carlton Reed, 57, was found guilty on one count of conspiracy.
The issue of property forfeiture has to be considered separately under federal law. According to Internal Revenue Service figures, Lehder earned an estimated $250 million in the cocaine business.
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