Usuga is widely known as the boss of the Clan del Golfo, a powerful drug cartel that controls cocaine’s routes to Mexico and the United States. He is being held at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center in New York and was due to appear before a US judge within hours.
At the time of his arrest, the alleged cartel leader was facing at least 122 charges of drug dealing, criminal conspiracy, murder and money laundering, according to the Colombian Attorney General’s Office.
His extradition was approved by presidential decree. after the Council of State of Colombia rejected an appeal by several victims of Usugi’s alleged crimes who wanted him tried in a Colombian court.
According to the State Department, the so-called “Clan del Golfo” is made up of former members of terrorist organizations and “uses violence and intimidation to control drug routes, cocaine processing labs, boat departure points, and covert airstrips.”