MIAMI (AP) — A fugitive accused of helping smuggle 38 tons of cocaine, and who allegedly plotted to use a submarine for drug runs, has been captured in Colombia and returned to the United States for prosecution.
Alex DeCubas, a Cuban-born, naturalized U.S. citizen on the run from federal indictments for 13 years, appeared in court Friday.
During the 1980s, DeCubas allegedly ran a small fleet of ships and boats, including a 236-foot freighter that could carry up to 5 tons of cocaine.
Authorities picked up DeCubas' trail in 1999 after cocaine seizures were traced to him in Colombia. In 2000, police outside Bogota discovered a 100-foot submarine that DeCubas allegedly was transforming into a drug freighter.
He was arrested Sept. 2 by Colombian police who tracked cell phone signals in Medellin.