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♪ ♪
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♪ ♪
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(gunshot).
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(gunshot).
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♪ ♪
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♪ ♪
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PRESENTER (over TV): Shake
this square world and
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blast off for Kicksville.
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NIXON: America's public enemy
number one is drug abuse.
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MAN: Heroin destroys
everything, everything.
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MAN: Prescribing pain pills
created huge numbers of addicts.
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DEMONSTRATORS: People die.
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MAN: Opium is cash.
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It's like you're
growing bills on the bush.
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PRESENTER (over TV): Crime and
drug abuse go hand in hand,
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it's like peanut
butter and jelly.
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HARRIS: There's now an
understanding that the
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war on drugs was
an abject failure.
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MAN: You have to stop and ask
yourself, how did we get here?
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(sirens, honking).
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♪ ♪
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MIKE: The physical feeling
of walking in to a house,
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into a cellar, into a rooftop,
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you're walking in
to their domain,
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you have to get your quarry,
your prey, to like you 'cause
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if they don't like you,
they won't trust you.
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These people are inches from
your face and they're looking
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at you, trying to rule out
that you're the one thing
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that they fear.
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An informant or an
undercover agent.
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So, when you walk into
that room, you know that
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a flaw in your act, you're dead.
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The first 16 years of my
life was in the Bronx.
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My brother was David.
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I was four years older
than him and I had to
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take care of him.
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Back in the 60s heroin
was usually in poorer
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neighborhoods and it
was getting worse.
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I had already started working
as an agent and my mom calls
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and just asks me to
come over to her house.
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And she had a bag
and I recognized
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what it was instantly.
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There was my brother's
hypodermic needle,
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a couple of bags of
heroin and a spoon.
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And when my brother came
home we were all crying.
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My mom, my brother and I and,
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I said, "You're a dead man."
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I said, "I'm looking
at a dead man."
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And I thought I said it
hopefully to scare him,
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to try and scare him into just
getting away from this drug.
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That's how I felt looking
at my poor baby brother.
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How does that feel?
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There's no worse feeling,
there's no, no worse.
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He was 19 years old and he
would live till age 33.
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But it gave me a
banner, a flag.
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Because to me going
after some drug dealer
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was just a waste of time.
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Let's get the source.
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The organization that's
controlling this stuff.
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RICH: In the early 70s, the
United States heroin market
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was mostly coming out of
Turkey, Marseilles, Sicily.
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But thanks to US, French
and international support,
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it basically came to a halt and
there was a bit of a vacuum.
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And then the so-called
Golden Triangle,
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Thailand, Laos, Burma,
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started increasing
their cultivation of opium.
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So very, very high quality
heroin was just pouring out
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of the Golden Triangle.
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We really began to realize
that we had a huge problem
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with Asian heroin.
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And it was being sold by
groups that were unfamiliar
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to US law enforcement.
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♪ ♪
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MIKE: The really big
breakthrough came
on July 4th, 1971,
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when this guy was arrested
with three kilos of heroin.
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This is a big
case in that time.
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I see by his passport,
that was his seventh trip
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coming in from
Bangkok, Thailand.
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And he's carrying heroin.
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And it's pure white.
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Now heroin is usually brown.
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So this is China White.
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China White was the process
where it came out pure white.
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And most of it came
from South East Asia.
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And I said,
"Who's your source?
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Where did you get this?"
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And he said, Gary and a guy
called Mr Geh in Bangkok.
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And I said, "Well, can
you introduce me to them?"
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And eventually he agrees to
set me up with his source.
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And I asked my boss, can
I go after the source.
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Nobody had ever
done this before.
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My boss said,
"Go, get them. Go do it."
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I thought I'd died
and gone to heaven.
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When I landed in Bangkok,
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first I'm met there
by Joe Jenkins
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who was the customs agent
in charge in Bangkok.
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I get to the hotel and I have
a phone number to call,
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Gary and Mr Geh.
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And they want to
come right over.
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So I'm on the
ground and running.
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The undercover role I used was
a guy with mob connections who
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wants to make big
bucks dealing dope.
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So, they show up.
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And the photo I gave you, Joe
Jenkins took from the kitchen.
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Gary is the guy to my left,
my back is to the camera.
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The guy to my right
is Mr Geh, G-E-H.
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So here I am watching
their reactions very closely,
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watching their eyes, picking
up the signs, you don't wanna
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go there, that's where you
wanna go, seeing them smiles,
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seeing this little micro
gestures that you're
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on the right track.
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And after they got to know me,
they said Mr Geh's uncle
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wants to meet me.
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Mr Geh's uncle ran the
factory in Chiang Mai.
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So Mr Geh was the key
to probably one of the
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biggest source of
heroin on Earth.
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And he wants to meet me.
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This is big.
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Destroying this factory and
getting these people is
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at the very least gonna
put a big dent in
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their whole operation.
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So I immediately
reported to Joe Jenkins.
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And immediately all my logistic
support starts to vanish.
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Days go by and I
get no support.
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Money dries up.
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I can't even pay
my hotel bill.
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And I call Joe, I said, "Look,
the worst thing can happen to
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me is that these
guys don't trust me.
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Whatever is going on,
you're gonna get me killed."
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That's when I get a call
to come into the embassy.
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Make sure I'm not followed.
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And there I meet a man
who's introduced to me
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as a CIA officer.
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And he says, "You
can't go to Chiang Mai."
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And I said, "Why?"
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He said, "Because we
can't protect you there."
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My first reaction was to
start to argue with him.
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He got frustrated
with me and said,
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"You don't know
all the priorities.
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Our country has
other priorities."
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Now I had never
heard that before.
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Like a moth to the flame,
I was target focused on
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getting these guys.
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But they took
that away from me.
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It was over, I
knew it was over.
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PATRICK: Nothing surprises
me about the fact that
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he got shut down.
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Nothing, you know.
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The CIA had every incentive to
make sure that law enforcement
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agents could not do their job.
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Certain drug traffickers
were avowedly anti-Communist.
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Now, the CIA will do
business with just about
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any anti-Communist on Earth.
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So starting in the 1950s,
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they were using drug
traffickers for espionage.
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And what they were interested
in is these drug traffickers
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access to the
Burma/China border.
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Really difficult terrain.
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So they would have these
traffickers, when they're
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going on their normal runs
to collect opium up in the
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mountains on the border,
gather espionage.
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The CIA armed these
drug traffickers.
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The CIA gave these
drug traffickers radios.
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The CIA basically
gave them seed capital.
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If somebody had come along
and dug into what the
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CIA was doing, it would
have scandalized the
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United States deeply.
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So, it's clear that Mike Levine
was never gonna make
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it to Chiang Mai to
see the factory.
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And it's really smart that he
didn't disobey what that CIA
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agent told him because it
could have gone bad for him.
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The drug trade is power and the
CIA is all about managing power.
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So if this person has power
and they're useful to the
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United States, they're okay.
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They can traffic drugs.
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(dog barking).
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His operation
moved so much heroin.
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It changed the landscape
of the United States.
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He is like Skeletor.
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He's villain supreme.
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REPORTER: Are you Khun Sa?
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(laughs).
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♪ ♪
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KHUENSAI: Khun Sa was
born in Shan State in
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the Golden Triangle.
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The Shan state was
rich in resources.
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But they are all under
the control of the
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Burmese government and army.
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So for the Shans
there was only opium.
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Khun Sa's grandfather had
horses and opium fields.
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So he was involved in
the opium business even
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before he was born.
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PATRICK: Khun Sa from very
early age was working for his
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grandfather and he was
extremely hard-working.
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He was also an
extremely ambitious person.
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And there was a particular
narco-group that the
CIA was backing,
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who took on Khun Sa as
sort of an apprentice.
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And gave him horses, guns,
some money, the things that
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he would need to
become a mini drug lord.
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From there it was
off to the races.
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He began to make China White.
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China White is
extremely high quality heroin.
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It's north of 90% pure.
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It's the finest heroin
probably that the world
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has ever seen.
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And Khun Sa had in his head
a fairly well developed
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concept of America.
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And it was the most lucrative
market for his China White.
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Everybody knew that Khun Sa
had good stuff so they wanted
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to see his logo on there.
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00:17:04,050 --> 00:17:05,890
This was a brand
like Coca-Cola.
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And it was meant to assure
quality to traffickers
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00:17:08,450 --> 00:17:11,450
along the supply chain.
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The CIA had already
created some of the
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00:17:16,890 --> 00:17:20,090
pipeline relationships and
infrastructure that allowed
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00:17:20,090 --> 00:17:22,570
the Golden Triangle to
thrive the way it did.
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Khun Sa came along and
plugged himself into that.
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He had territory right on the
Thai/Burma border so he would
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00:17:31,290 --> 00:17:34,930
send caravans up into Burma to
collect the opium, bring them
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00:17:34,930 --> 00:17:39,050
down to the Thai/Burma border
to refine them into heroin.
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00:17:39,890 --> 00:17:43,650
Shoot it straight down to
the coast and put it in a
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cargo ship mixed in with legal
goods and then have it
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sent to America.
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By the mid 1970s
Khun Sa is a rising star.
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♪ ♪
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RICH: Khun Sa was the
largest drug trafficker
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00:18:24,010 --> 00:18:26,610
we had ever encountered.
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And his heroin was
pouring into the country.
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I'm Richard LaMagna.
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I'm a retired DEA Agent.
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In New York we were getting
huge loads of pure heroin,
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50, 100 pounds at a time.
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But people just
weren't investigating it.
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We just didn't have that many
people in the country who
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knew how to investigate
Asian drug trafficking.
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And Khun Sa was out of reach,
up in the mountains of Thailand.
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And he grew ever
more powerful.
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♪ ♪
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PATRICK: Not every
drug lord has a dream.
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Khun Sa had a dream.
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And he realized that heroin
was the ladder he could climb
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to being a great man.
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He also realized that if
he could amass followers,
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weapons, supply routes,
then he could be king of
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00:19:52,530 --> 00:19:55,330
a little patch of the world.
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And so he starts saying I'm
Shan, we the Shan people,
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we don't have a
nation of our own.
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00:20:03,770 --> 00:20:07,930
KHUENSAI: Khun Sa says
he was fighting for the
249
00:20:07,930 --> 00:20:11,130
freedom of Shan State.
250
00:20:15,970 --> 00:20:19,170
PATRICK: So Khun Sa is able
to convince a lot of people
251
00:20:19,170 --> 00:20:21,970
to fight for him.
252
00:20:21,970 --> 00:20:23,530
You'll get steady meals.
253
00:20:23,530 --> 00:20:25,450
You'll get to hold a gun,
you get to fight for the
254
00:20:25,450 --> 00:20:27,570
liberation of your people.
255
00:20:27,570 --> 00:20:30,890
Sounds a lot better than you can
be a grunt in a drug cartel.
256
00:20:32,370 --> 00:20:35,810
He was able to quickly
amass 3,000 fighters and
257
00:20:35,810 --> 00:20:40,370
he creates his own
Shan narco army.
258
00:20:44,010 --> 00:20:48,170
Circa 1977, you
start to see a shift.
259
00:20:48,170 --> 00:20:51,170
Khun Sa is controlling
more of the opium trade
260
00:20:51,170 --> 00:20:53,370
than his rivals.
261
00:20:53,370 --> 00:20:55,770
He's the main man now.
262
00:21:10,290 --> 00:21:13,890
♪ ♪
263
00:21:13,890 --> 00:21:17,090
Where you really start to see
things turn is the DEA opens
264
00:21:17,090 --> 00:21:20,970
an office a few hours
drive up mountain roads
265
00:21:20,970 --> 00:21:24,850
from Khun Sa's territory
in the city of Chiang Mai.
266
00:21:27,010 --> 00:21:31,290
That is in a sense,
a declaration of war.
267
00:21:34,730 --> 00:21:37,690
Khun Sa was very squarely
in their cross-hairs.
268
00:21:37,690 --> 00:21:41,170
He was the person that they
most wanted to take down.
269
00:21:43,410 --> 00:21:46,610
POWERS: Like most DEA agents,
you go in ready for a fight.
270
00:21:46,610 --> 00:21:49,930
And bad things
happen in this world.
271
00:21:49,930 --> 00:21:51,690
That was a bad one.
272
00:21:55,810 --> 00:22:02,570
♪ ♪
273
00:22:13,370 --> 00:22:17,290
POWERS: In this world you're
either good guy or bad guy.
274
00:22:17,290 --> 00:22:19,410
My name is Mike Powers,
actually it's Michael Powers
275
00:22:19,410 --> 00:22:22,050
but nobody calls me Michael.
276
00:22:22,050 --> 00:22:25,490
I'm a good guy and I
don't like the bad guys.
277
00:22:28,370 --> 00:22:33,130
I wanted to be as good a
narcotics agent as I could be.
278
00:22:33,130 --> 00:22:36,330
But you had to be aggressive.
279
00:22:37,970 --> 00:22:41,730
If you were a passive person
it was not the place for you.
280
00:22:45,010 --> 00:22:48,610
I transferred to
Thailand in 1978.
281
00:22:50,930 --> 00:22:54,570
RICH: Mike Powers headed
the DEA Chiang Mai office.
282
00:22:55,690 --> 00:22:57,090
That was the hot-spot.
283
00:22:57,090 --> 00:23:00,130
That's where the big loads
of heroin were coming from,
284
00:23:00,130 --> 00:23:02,730
that's where the
refineries were.
285
00:23:02,730 --> 00:23:06,890
And for a DEA agent, it
was very exciting getting
286
00:23:06,890 --> 00:23:09,650
so close to the source.
287
00:23:10,050 --> 00:23:12,090
Mike ran very good operations.
288
00:23:12,090 --> 00:23:16,170
He was very effective
and very capable.
289
00:23:18,090 --> 00:23:20,810
POWERS: I wanted to find
out where the labs were,
290
00:23:20,810 --> 00:23:24,370
who was supplying the labs,
the names of the people.
291
00:23:24,370 --> 00:23:26,970
Where are they?
292
00:23:28,290 --> 00:23:30,810
We made some big
seizures in Thailand.
293
00:23:30,810 --> 00:23:34,090
Two kilos, ten kilos, even
once case we did 50 kilos of
294
00:23:34,090 --> 00:23:37,570
heroin which is an
awful lot of dope.
295
00:23:42,610 --> 00:23:45,610
RICH: Khun Sa felt threatened
by us because he knew DEA
296
00:23:45,610 --> 00:23:48,010
was not at all
willing to back off.
297
00:23:48,010 --> 00:23:49,930
We had a mission
to accomplish.
298
00:23:49,930 --> 00:23:54,210
And he knew who our
agents in Chiang Mai were.
299
00:23:58,770 --> 00:24:02,370
So to be an agent in Chiang Mai
that was threatening a
300
00:24:02,370 --> 00:24:06,970
very big opium empire,
was very, very dangerous.
301
00:24:16,210 --> 00:24:22,090
(chatter).
302
00:24:23,450 --> 00:24:24,930
INTERVIEWER: Do you
have anything you wanna say
303
00:24:24,930 --> 00:24:27,890
about the events
of October 1980?
304
00:24:28,210 --> 00:24:31,970
POWERS: That's a fair question
and I knew it was gonna come
305
00:24:31,970 --> 00:24:33,210
here at some point.
306
00:24:33,210 --> 00:24:35,050
So...
307
00:24:35,050 --> 00:24:37,450
I don't wanna talk about it.
308
00:24:48,410 --> 00:24:51,050
VIRAJ: It was a very,
very warm, very hot day.
309
00:24:51,050 --> 00:24:54,970
At least 32, 33 degrees.
310
00:25:00,250 --> 00:25:03,210
My name is Viraj Jutimitta.
311
00:25:03,770 --> 00:25:08,490
I work in the Thai police
organization for 32 years.
312
00:25:14,210 --> 00:25:17,210
Mike Powers' wife was
coming to town from her
313
00:25:17,210 --> 00:25:21,090
residence in the
U. S. Consulate area.
314
00:25:24,090 --> 00:25:25,810
PATRICK: She's going
to a shoe shop to get
315
00:25:25,810 --> 00:25:28,050
her shoes re-heeled.
316
00:25:28,050 --> 00:25:31,810
She also happened to
have her three-year-old
daughter with her.
317
00:25:35,490 --> 00:25:38,930
VIRAJ: I got a phone
call around noon or so.
318
00:25:40,690 --> 00:25:43,210
Mike Powers' wife was
kidnapped and they're
319
00:25:43,210 --> 00:25:46,210
holding her near the market.
320
00:25:47,370 --> 00:25:50,330
Immediately I told my team
that we should not get
321
00:25:50,330 --> 00:25:52,890
gunman to be too excited.
322
00:25:52,890 --> 00:25:56,730
Talk to him to try to cool
the guy down so that
323
00:25:56,730 --> 00:25:59,450
he can release her.
324
00:26:00,130 --> 00:26:02,930
But when the provincial
police commander came in,
325
00:26:02,930 --> 00:26:06,170
took over the case,
my guy has to move out.
326
00:26:06,570 --> 00:26:08,410
But I don't think the
provincial police were
327
00:26:08,410 --> 00:26:12,050
trained in this area
before, you see.
328
00:26:14,370 --> 00:26:16,090
PATRICK: Mike Powers is
summoned to the scene
329
00:26:16,090 --> 00:26:18,570
and goes through the crowd.
330
00:26:18,570 --> 00:26:20,530
He pulls open his shirt
to show the gunman,
331
00:26:20,530 --> 00:26:22,370
I'm not armed.
332
00:26:22,370 --> 00:26:25,330
He goes up as close as he can
get to the gunman and says,
333
00:26:25,330 --> 00:26:28,570
"At least give up the kid."
334
00:26:28,570 --> 00:26:30,690
The gunman complies.
335
00:26:30,690 --> 00:26:33,650
He gives up Mike's
three-year-old daughter.
336
00:26:35,410 --> 00:26:39,130
VIRAJ: They spent about
six hour negotiating.
337
00:26:41,930 --> 00:26:45,930
The gunman didn't want to kill
her but finally I think she
338
00:26:45,930 --> 00:26:48,810
was moving or something
and the gun went off.
339
00:26:52,490 --> 00:26:54,930
She passed away.
340
00:27:02,290 --> 00:27:03,930
POWERS: Anything I wanna say?
341
00:27:03,930 --> 00:27:06,850
Yeah, wish it had been me.
342
00:27:09,810 --> 00:27:12,170
PATRICK: After the
murder of Joyce Powers,
343
00:27:12,170 --> 00:27:15,330
there is a change
of tone in Thailand.
344
00:27:16,850 --> 00:27:20,170
Khun Sa is not
to be tolerated.
345
00:27:20,170 --> 00:27:24,370
Khun Sa is a serious
enemy and so the DEA is
346
00:27:24,370 --> 00:27:26,810
absolutely determined
to actually go into
347
00:27:26,810 --> 00:27:29,570
Khun Sa's territory
and take him out.
348
00:27:37,250 --> 00:27:44,010
♪ ♪
349
00:27:52,530 --> 00:27:54,810
IVAN: While I was working
the interstate, I observed
a vehicle pass me.
350
00:27:54,810 --> 00:27:56,810
I saw a traffic violation.
351
00:27:56,810 --> 00:27:58,250
I made a stop on that vehicle.
352
00:27:58,250 --> 00:27:59,970
What I'll do is I'm gonna
have you step out of the car.
353
00:27:59,970 --> 00:28:02,250
I'm come talk to you back
here on the passenger side,
on my right.
354
00:28:06,450 --> 00:28:07,610
So I know you're nervous
'cause you don't have
355
00:28:07,610 --> 00:28:09,290
a drivers' license.
356
00:28:09,290 --> 00:28:10,490
I get it, right?
357
00:28:10,490 --> 00:28:12,410
What we're looking for
is how you're standing,
358
00:28:12,410 --> 00:28:13,850
how you're talking.
359
00:28:13,850 --> 00:28:15,170
And who's the girl
in the car with you?
360
00:28:15,170 --> 00:28:16,290
DRIVER: She's my girlfriend.
IVAN: Your girlfriend?
361
00:28:16,290 --> 00:28:17,930
What kind of story
you're giving me.
362
00:28:21,410 --> 00:28:23,370
IVAN: All that stuff plays
a factor in our decision
363
00:28:23,370 --> 00:28:24,930
to search the vehicle.
364
00:28:24,930 --> 00:28:26,890
Yeah, he was super
nervous when I stopped him.
365
00:28:26,890 --> 00:28:28,090
When I asked her, I said,
366
00:28:28,090 --> 00:28:29,210
"Why do you have to go
all the way to Phoenix
367
00:28:29,210 --> 00:28:31,010
to pay your Chase credit card?"
368
00:28:31,010 --> 00:28:33,290
And she goes,
"Uh, I don't know."
369
00:28:33,290 --> 00:28:34,650
(laughs).
370
00:28:34,650 --> 00:28:36,050
We wanna make sure that
we don't miss anything
371
00:28:36,050 --> 00:28:38,530
because sometimes
they get creative.
372
00:28:53,090 --> 00:28:54,490
DEPUTY: Yeah.
373
00:29:05,570 --> 00:29:07,010
IVAN: It was amazing.
374
00:29:07,010 --> 00:29:10,010
It was kinda like, wow, like all
this is inside this vehicle.
375
00:29:10,970 --> 00:29:12,330
RORY: Excellent work, dude.
376
00:29:12,330 --> 00:29:14,210
IVAN: This was the biggest
stop I've ever had
377
00:29:14,210 --> 00:29:16,730
in my whole career.
378
00:29:23,970 --> 00:29:28,410
♪ ♪
379
00:29:42,690 --> 00:29:48,810
♪ ♪
380
00:29:59,010 --> 00:30:02,130
PATRICK: One chilly morning
in Khun Sa's territory,
381
00:30:02,130 --> 00:30:04,610
(rooster crows).
382
00:30:05,210 --> 00:30:09,250
the locals see all of
these armored vehicles,
383
00:30:09,250 --> 00:30:12,850
trucks and motorcycles
roaring into their territory.
384
00:30:23,250 --> 00:30:27,330
And hopping out of all these
vehicles are 800 troops
385
00:30:27,330 --> 00:30:30,130
from Thailand's
Border Patrol Police.
386
00:30:31,010 --> 00:30:33,410
(explosion).
387
00:30:34,530 --> 00:30:35,770
(gunfire).
388
00:30:35,770 --> 00:30:37,530
(explosion).
389
00:30:37,530 --> 00:30:40,770
They are going dusty
street by street,
390
00:30:40,770 --> 00:30:43,850
seizing Khun Sa's base.
391
00:30:44,250 --> 00:30:47,330
REPORTER (over TV): The Thais
used air power and top
border patrol police
392
00:30:47,330 --> 00:30:49,530
in an operation backed
by American money and
393
00:30:49,530 --> 00:30:51,570
advisors on the ground.
394
00:30:51,570 --> 00:30:54,370
Like this man, a
US narcotics agent.
395
00:31:01,090 --> 00:31:03,370
PATRICK: The border patrol
police get all the way
396
00:31:03,370 --> 00:31:06,210
to Khun Sa's villa.
397
00:31:08,330 --> 00:31:11,490
And Khun Sa is not there.
398
00:31:23,290 --> 00:31:29,290
(thunder, rain).
399
00:31:37,050 --> 00:31:38,810
(shouting).
400
00:31:40,250 --> 00:31:44,530
(singing).
401
00:31:45,570 --> 00:31:49,450
KHUN: No one has known where
I was for the last four years.
402
00:31:49,450 --> 00:31:53,290
Not the CIA or the
DEA or even the KGB.
403
00:31:55,890 --> 00:31:58,930
The DEA may wish I
was dead but I'm not.
404
00:31:58,930 --> 00:32:04,050
(chanting).
405
00:32:06,010 --> 00:32:07,850
PATRICK: Khun Sa took a
lot of his loyal fighters
406
00:32:07,850 --> 00:32:11,410
across the border to Burma.
407
00:32:12,570 --> 00:32:15,410
He starts merging with
other Shan rebel groups
408
00:32:15,410 --> 00:32:19,010
and now he's got
20,000 fighters.
409
00:32:20,330 --> 00:32:24,050
And now he's got a
territory as large as Florida.
410
00:32:30,650 --> 00:32:32,970
KHUN: Machine gun.
Boom boom boom boom!
411
00:32:32,970 --> 00:32:35,250
(laughs).
412
00:32:36,650 --> 00:32:40,770
(sirens).
413
00:32:40,770 --> 00:32:43,970
RICH: In the United States
the situation was horrific.
414
00:32:44,930 --> 00:32:51,090
In New York alone, there were
around 250,000 heroin addicts.
415
00:32:58,090 --> 00:33:00,130
He was so powerful.
416
00:33:00,130 --> 00:33:03,890
He was the biggest drug
war lord in the world.
417
00:33:07,170 --> 00:33:10,890
And I was told we had to
do something about this.
418
00:33:12,410 --> 00:33:14,090
I had the knowledge
and the wherewithal of
419
00:33:14,090 --> 00:33:15,850
how to go about it.
420
00:33:15,850 --> 00:33:18,890
But I had to build
the team to do it.
421
00:33:21,010 --> 00:33:23,290
NICK: All we knew
was we had a mission.
422
00:33:23,290 --> 00:33:24,770
We were brand new.
423
00:33:24,770 --> 00:33:27,530
We were pretty much
starting out from scratch.
424
00:33:27,530 --> 00:33:31,090
And Khun Sa was in
charge of an army.
425
00:33:31,090 --> 00:33:33,090
Was it realistic to
think that we would get him?
426
00:33:33,090 --> 00:33:35,090
I don't know.
427
00:33:39,490 --> 00:33:45,450
(drumming).
428
00:33:46,770 --> 00:33:49,770
PETER: It's power, it's money.
429
00:33:52,330 --> 00:33:56,130
If we could figure out a way
to stop Khun Sa's money,
430
00:33:56,130 --> 00:33:59,170
that would be the way
to stop Khun Sa.
431
00:34:12,730 --> 00:34:15,570
My name is Peter Carpanini and
I spent 23 years with the
432
00:34:15,570 --> 00:34:18,210
Drug Enforcement Administration.
433
00:34:21,370 --> 00:34:25,890
Khun Sa was the person that
we all wanted to get but there
434
00:34:25,890 --> 00:34:28,690
was no one looking
at the big picture.
435
00:34:39,970 --> 00:34:42,330
NICK: In the summer of 1986, I
learned that I was going to be
436
00:34:42,330 --> 00:34:46,490
assigned to a new enforcement
group in New York City.
437
00:34:46,850 --> 00:34:50,090
And this was the Asian
Heroin Group, Number 41.
438
00:34:51,330 --> 00:34:54,170
And there were only
eight of us in the group.
439
00:34:54,570 --> 00:34:58,090
PETER: Group 41
was a unique animal.
440
00:34:58,370 --> 00:35:02,370
We weren't about
knocking down doors.
441
00:35:17,250 --> 00:35:21,290
RICH: We were able to start
building our intelligence base
442
00:35:21,290 --> 00:35:24,210
in knowing who's
important, who isn't.
443
00:35:24,850 --> 00:35:29,130
PETER: And we realize if we
were able to arrest Khun Sa's
444
00:35:29,130 --> 00:35:32,690
lieutenants, as many as
possible, we would be able to
445
00:35:32,690 --> 00:35:35,690
dismantle his empire.
446
00:35:49,210 --> 00:35:52,370
Group 41 had gotten some
information regarding a
447
00:35:52,370 --> 00:35:55,450
possible shipment of
heroin that was destined
448
00:35:55,450 --> 00:35:57,890
to Port Newark.
449
00:36:01,730 --> 00:36:05,250
We were told by our informant
that the shipment was to be
450
00:36:05,250 --> 00:36:08,810
20 units or 30 pounds of
South-East Asian heroin.
451
00:36:11,690 --> 00:36:15,290
We had information to look
at specific numbered crates.
452
00:36:17,610 --> 00:36:20,450
So we opened up the container.
453
00:36:20,450 --> 00:36:22,410
There were numerous
cartons and cases of
454
00:36:22,410 --> 00:36:25,330
Chinese ornamental vases.
455
00:36:26,250 --> 00:36:30,810
We x-rayed the crate
and the vases;
456
00:36:30,810 --> 00:36:32,290
we actually broke a vase
457
00:36:32,290 --> 00:36:35,490
and there was no heroin
where it was supposed to be.
458
00:36:35,490 --> 00:36:38,250
We couldn't find
the heroin anywhere.
459
00:36:39,770 --> 00:36:42,690
Then we looked in
the crate itself.
460
00:36:46,250 --> 00:36:51,290
And within the wooden
corner posts of the crates
461
00:36:51,290 --> 00:36:56,370
they had drilled a hole
and put a PVC pipe.
462
00:36:57,010 --> 00:37:01,370
Within the PVC pipe they packed
the South-East Asian heroin.
463
00:37:04,690 --> 00:37:08,690
We found out the
person responsible for
arranging the shipment
464
00:37:11,690 --> 00:37:14,530
was an individual
named Mr Lin.
465
00:37:15,770 --> 00:37:21,010
He was a lieutenant in
charge of finance for Khun Sa.
466
00:37:24,930 --> 00:37:27,050
The highest member of
Khun Sa's organization
467
00:37:27,050 --> 00:37:29,970
that we had ever come across.
468
00:37:29,970 --> 00:37:32,930
That's when the case got
extremely interesting.
469
00:37:34,370 --> 00:37:38,170
He was extradited to the
United States from Thailand.
470
00:37:39,850 --> 00:37:41,490
(laughs).
471
00:37:41,490 --> 00:37:44,250
You know, you think about
arresting someone like him but
472
00:37:44,250 --> 00:37:47,770
the fact that he was actually
on a flight heading to
473
00:37:47,770 --> 00:37:50,730
New York was pretty amazing.
474
00:37:53,250 --> 00:37:56,730
When Mr Lin got off the plane,
he was a bit numb.
475
00:37:59,290 --> 00:38:01,970
He wasn't in
South-East Asia anymore.
476
00:38:01,970 --> 00:38:05,690
He wouldn't be in a position
to pay his way out of prison.
477
00:38:08,690 --> 00:38:13,770
We explained what he would be
looking at from a prison term.
478
00:38:14,490 --> 00:38:16,610
And eventually he
made the decision that
479
00:38:16,610 --> 00:38:19,570
he wanted to cooperate.
480
00:38:21,610 --> 00:38:25,330
The information that Mr Lin
gave us covered Khun Sa's
481
00:38:25,330 --> 00:38:29,850
highest-level lieutenants
who were responsible for
482
00:38:29,850 --> 00:38:35,570
everything from the exportation
of heroin, to the finances,
483
00:38:35,570 --> 00:38:39,890
to the logistics of running
an army of 25,000 people.
484
00:38:39,890 --> 00:38:43,930
(chanting).
485
00:38:43,930 --> 00:38:46,050
NICK: We were
getting closer and closer.
486
00:38:46,050 --> 00:38:48,170
Then we started to
realize that, yeah,
487
00:38:48,170 --> 00:38:50,170
well this just
might be possible.
488
00:39:02,570 --> 00:39:06,250
PETER: It was an
absolute monster of a case.
489
00:39:06,490 --> 00:39:10,130
We were focusing on arresting
the upper echelons within
490
00:39:10,130 --> 00:39:15,050
Khun Sa's heroin
organization in Thailand.
491
00:39:16,730 --> 00:39:20,010
These were people that
controlled the logistics,
492
00:39:20,010 --> 00:39:23,410
the finance, the
exportation of heroin.
493
00:39:23,410 --> 00:39:26,570
If we could stop those three
sections, we would put an end
494
00:39:26,570 --> 00:39:29,170
to Khun Sa's reign.
495
00:39:29,490 --> 00:39:32,570
The problem was they had to
be arrested at the same time,
496
00:39:32,570 --> 00:39:35,210
within the same day.
497
00:39:35,210 --> 00:39:37,930
If not, word would get out,
of course, and they would be
498
00:39:37,930 --> 00:39:40,450
in the wind and we'd
never see them again.
499
00:39:41,770 --> 00:39:43,130
And that's a huge thing.
500
00:39:43,130 --> 00:39:45,450
It's not like you're
looking at a two-block area.
501
00:39:45,450 --> 00:39:47,850
You're looking at a country.
502
00:39:57,930 --> 00:40:03,810
♪ ♪
503
00:40:03,810 --> 00:40:07,850
VIRAJ: We had ten targets
in the area of Mae Hong Son,
504
00:40:07,850 --> 00:40:11,850
Bangkok, Chiang Mai
and Chiang Rai.
505
00:40:15,050 --> 00:40:16,890
We used the element of
surprise and we used the
506
00:40:16,890 --> 00:40:19,130
early hour in the morning.
507
00:40:21,210 --> 00:40:24,410
I was up in Chiang Rai,
in the border area.
508
00:40:24,410 --> 00:40:26,650
And I was talking
to the team through
509
00:40:26,650 --> 00:40:29,490
the radio communication.
510
00:40:29,810 --> 00:40:31,210
PETER: I was home.
511
00:40:31,210 --> 00:40:34,810
I had a satellite phone and
we were communicating with
512
00:40:34,810 --> 00:40:38,410
the agents in country and
just kinda waiting.
513
00:40:42,130 --> 00:40:45,850
VIRAJ: And every unit hit the
target at 6:00 in the morning.
514
00:40:48,570 --> 00:40:50,690
PETER: And we got one,
we got two, we got three,
515
00:40:50,690 --> 00:40:51,890
we got four.
516
00:40:51,890 --> 00:40:53,090
And then six.
517
00:40:53,090 --> 00:40:56,210
And it was an exciting day.
518
00:41:04,530 --> 00:41:06,690
REPORTER (over TV): DEA agents
working in Northern Thailand
519
00:41:06,690 --> 00:41:09,330
with the Thai military, have
arrested ten leaders of the
520
00:41:09,330 --> 00:41:12,370
Shan United Army drug cartel.
521
00:41:12,370 --> 00:41:14,730
ROBERT: These individuals,
all associated with the drug
522
00:41:14,730 --> 00:41:18,730
trafficking organization
controlled by Khun Sa,
523
00:41:18,730 --> 00:41:21,850
have been taken into
custody by Thai authorities.
524
00:41:29,850 --> 00:41:33,370
VIRAJ: I feel relief.
525
00:41:33,370 --> 00:41:34,890
Nobody was hurt.
526
00:41:34,890 --> 00:41:38,370
No accident,
no death, no injury.
527
00:41:38,370 --> 00:41:40,930
All the targets were arrested.
528
00:41:40,930 --> 00:41:43,490
What else can you
ask more than that?
529
00:41:50,650 --> 00:41:54,450
PATRICK: Operation Tiger Trap
hurt Khun Sa's infrastructure
530
00:41:54,450 --> 00:41:57,770
and his finance to a
degree that he was far weaker.
531
00:41:57,770 --> 00:42:01,290
So, you're starting
to see soldiers and
followers peel away.
532
00:42:01,290 --> 00:42:04,410
They're defecting and his
operation is shrinking.
533
00:42:12,090 --> 00:42:14,290
PETER: We accomplished
something that rarely
534
00:42:14,290 --> 00:42:15,890
had been done.
535
00:42:15,890 --> 00:42:19,490
You rarely hear of drug cases
where you actually remove
536
00:42:19,490 --> 00:42:21,770
a product from the table.
537
00:42:21,770 --> 00:42:25,930
The South-East Asian heroin in
New York City was almost gone.
538
00:42:34,690 --> 00:42:36,450
PATRICK: But you've
gotta remember,
539
00:42:36,450 --> 00:42:38,970
Khun Sa was extremely slippery.
540
00:42:40,290 --> 00:42:43,370
Khun Sa knew the
art of the deal.
541
00:42:56,690 --> 00:42:59,130
Think about what happened to
Pablo Escobar, who got shot in
542
00:42:59,130 --> 00:43:01,850
a back street in Columbia.
543
00:43:01,850 --> 00:43:03,650
Think about what
happened to El Chapo.
544
00:43:03,650 --> 00:43:06,210
He's in a super-max
cell in Colorado.
545
00:43:06,210 --> 00:43:09,650
Khun Sa got out of the
game pretty cleanly.
546
00:43:20,490 --> 00:43:22,490
KHUN: Whew.
547
00:43:23,690 --> 00:43:26,810
RICH: It's so ironic that
some guy in New York selling a
548
00:43:26,810 --> 00:43:30,770
couple of ounces on the street
of heroin would go to jail for
549
00:43:30,770 --> 00:43:32,890
at least ten years or more.
550
00:43:32,890 --> 00:43:36,970
And yet you have this warlord
who sold heroin to thousands
551
00:43:36,970 --> 00:43:41,090
of people, living out his
existence in a very cushy
552
00:43:41,090 --> 00:43:43,490
manor in Rangoon.
553
00:43:48,090 --> 00:43:49,410
Captioned by
Cotter Media Group.