Reputed Cocaine Ring Money Man Pleads Innocent

The reputed finance chief of the Medellin cocaine cartel pleaded innocent to money laundering today and was jailed without bond after prosecutors argued he might flee the country no matter how high his bail.

Eduardo Martinez Romero--the first of Colombia’s “Extraditables” brought to the United States for trial in a drug crackdown launched last month--entered the plea before U.S. Magistrate Joel M. Feldman. Martinez, 36, was extradited under heavy guard Thursday.

Martinez is accused of helping launder $1.2 billion in drug profits through U.S. banks for the Medellin cartel, which is believed to supply 80% of the cocaine in the United States. It is based in the Colombian city of Medellin.

Martinez is among the so-called “Extraditables,” a list of drug figures wanted in the United States.

He could receive 30 years in prison under Colombian law or life under U.S. law. Defense attorney Ed Garland said it is not clear which law applies.

The magistrate today agreed with Assistant U.S. Atty. Wilmer Parker III that Martinez might flee if freed on bail.

Escaped Arrest in Panama

“Colombia is hardly the only country in the world where Mr. Martinez could live and live quite comfortably with the millions of dollars to which he has access,” the prosecutor said. Parker noted that Martinez escaped an arrest attempt in Panama in March shortly after his indictment.

Garland and co-counsel Oscar Rodriguez of Miami told the magistrate that their client has a graduate degree in marketing from a Colombian university, has been married 15 years, has four children and has held legitimate jobs at Medellin banks.

“He has never come to the United States other than to bring his children to Disney World on a vacation,” Rodriguez said.

Garland asked the magistrate to put Martinez under a form of house arrest. He also argued that Martinez was accused only of laundering drug money, a “financial transaction” not serious enough to keep him without bail.

But the magistrate disagreed. “It is well recognized that money is what oils the machine that allows these unlawful activities such as cocaine distributing . . . to go on,” he said. “It is a very serious offense.”

Held in Solitary Confinement

Rodriguez said Martinez is being held in solitary confinement at an undisclosed location. The hearing was postponed to today after Martinez said last week that he speaks only Spanish and did not fully understand the charges.

Weldon Kennedy, agent in charge of the FBI office in Atlanta, has said agents are on “an increased state of alert” against any retaliation from the cartel. Latin America’s drug barons have carried out bombings and shootings in Colombia in recent weeks.

Drug traffickers are said to fear extradition to the United States because they believe they will not be able to escape conviction and prison.

Martinez was indicted in March as a result of a 2 1/2-year investigation dubbed Operation Polar Cap. The investigation resulted in charges against 127 people and two Latin American banks. Martinez is reputed to be the cartel’s coordinator of a complex, competitive business that has laundered at least $15 billion.