PART 1 OF 4
SOUTHERN FRONT CONTRAS
What drug trafficking allegations was CIA aware of, and when, involving Southern Front Contras? How did CIA respond to this information, and how was this information shared with other U.S. Government entities?
The Southern Front Trafficking Reports
Agency Knowledge and Handling of Allegations of Southern Front Involvement in Drug Trafficking
General Summary and Background. In October 1984, CIA began receiving reporting that Southern Front ARDE leaders had agreed to assist a Miami-based drug trafficker in bringing narcotics into the United States. The information from this series of reports was furnished to senior officials of U.S. intelligence and law enforcement agencies.
CIA Records. In January 1984 Headquarters received information that indicated that helicopters purchased by Cuban-Americans on behalf of Eden Pastora's Contra organization--ARDE--were being held in a Miami warehouse owned by a businessman. A Miami-based Cuban-American was identified as the donor of the helicopters. In January a Headquarters cable noted that CIA had been advised by the FBI that Sarkis might be "subject to judicial [sic] investigation connected with alleged illegal activities." As a result, the Headquarters cable also advised that any Agency asset who was in contact with Sarkis be warned that "Sarkis may be involved in alleged drug trafficking."
In May 1984, Headquarters received a cable regarding Carol Prado, a senior ARDE official. The cable noted that there was "little to add at this time to what has already been reported [concerning] Prado's involvement in illegal drug and gun activities." The cable noted that the Department of the Treasury, the U.S. Customs Service and the FBI were "aware of the activities of this group and are watching them closely."
First Report. In October 1984, CIA received information indicating that senior ARDE officials, including several of Pastora's close associates--Adolfo Chamorro, Carol Prado and Gerardo Duran--had established a working relationship with a Miami-based drug trafficker. An October 1984 cable to Headquarters indicated that Adolfo Chamorro--Pastora's second-in-command--had just consummated a "mutual assistance agreement" with a Miami-based narcotics trafficker whose name was not known at the time of the report. The cable reporting this information to Headquarters noted that:
[ARDE] would provide [ARDE] operational facilities in Costa Rica and Nicaragua to facilitate the transportation of narcotics, and would obtain the assistance of Costa Rican Government officials in providing documentation, in exchange for financial support, aircraft, and pilot training for the [ARDE].
Further, the cable indicated that the unnamed Miami-based drug trafficker had:
Turned over helicopters to ARDE and made arrangements for a C-47 to be flown to El Salvador; and
Promised to pay ARDE $200,000 per month once the narcotics operations were underway. . . .
In October 1984, a cable asked Headquarters for permission to share this information with the local Department of Treasury office. The cable noted that Treasury had an ongoing investigation of suspected arms smuggling by ARDE elements in the Miami area, and that the Department had previously said that ARDE representatives "were in contact with [a Miami-based Cuban-American]. . . who is suspected of trafficking in narcotics." No information has been found to indicate a Headquarters response to this cable. However the information was disseminated by Headquarters to a senior officer in the Department of Treasury and other senior U.S. Government, intelligence, and law enforcement officials in Washington shortly thereafter.
October 1984 Sensitive Memorandum Dissemination. In October 1984, Headquarters disseminated a Sensitive Memorandum based upon the information that had been provided in mid-October. All the information was disseminated, except that a general reference to El Salvador as the destination for the C-47 flight was substituted for the specific reference to Ilopango Air Base.
A "Headquarters Comment" was included in the disseminated Sensitive Memorandum that indicated it was not known "whether Pastora himself was aware of the narcotics angle of the agreement." An additional Headquarters Comment pointed out that confirmation had been received that the ARDE had recently acquired two helicopters and a DC-3 transport plane.
The Sensitive Memorandum was disseminated to 13 senior U.S. Government, intelligence, and law enforcement officials by position title. Within CIA, this Sensitive Memorandum was also disseminated to senior officials.
Second Report. An October 1984 cable to Headquarters reported that the name of the Miami-based drug trafficker with whom ARDE officials were dealing was Jorge Morales. The cable restated the terms of the mutual assistance agreement that had been reported in mid-October and added the following details:
On October 31, Gerardo Duran, an ARDE pilot who was flying on Morales' behalf, was scheduled to fly from Miami to the Bahamas.
Morales and Adolfo Chamorro were in the process of setting up "bank accounts in Miami through which to funnel the monthly payments to the ARDE once the working relationship between Morales and the ARDE is in full operation."
No mention was made of Pastora in this report, except to identify him as the head of the ARDE.
November 5, 1984 Sensitive Memorandum Dissemination. On November 3, 1984, a Headquarters cable stated that the information provided on October 31 was being prepared for limited dissemination. Further, the cable advised that Headquarters intended to discuss with DoJ during the week of November 5 how to proceed regarding the handling of the source of the information--presumably in light of the information the source had provided regarding alleged narcotics trafficking. The cable advised that no direct action was to be taken with regard to Pastora. The Headquarters cable noted that:
Given the volume and the detail of the evidence we have received, it is difficult to believe that an operation of this magnitude could be conducted within the [ARDE] without [Pastora's] approval. We have been fastidious about insuring that all information is passed to appropriate agencies on a timely basis and we must avoid at all costs an accusation that [CIA] condoned narcotics trafficking by [ARDE].
On November 5, 1984, the information provided on October 31 was disseminated in Sensitive Memorandum format to 16 senior U.S. Government, intelligence, and law enforcement officials by position title.
CIA Report to DoJ. On November 7, 1984, CIA General Counsel Stanley Sporkin attached a cover memorandum to the October Sensitive Memorandum and forwarded it to DCI Casey. Sporkin's memorandum indicated that the information had already been shared with appropriate officials in the U.S. Government, but stated that he intended to have OGC directly contact DoJ Criminal Division Deputy Assistant Attorney General Mark Richard in order to protect "the public as well as the Agency's interests." On November 19, 1984, according to a January 15, 1985 OGC memorandum, an OGC representative orally briefed the Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division regarding the information.
A November 26, 1984 OGC memorandum for the record (MFR) indicated that OGC and DO officers had met with DoJ, FBI and DEA representatives on November 9 and November 19 to discuss the substance and implications of the information that had been disseminated in October and November. According to the MFR, DEA reported at the November 19 meeting that Jorge Morales was awaiting trial in Miami, along with 13 other defendants, on federal charges of engaging in a Continuous Criminal Enterprise. It was agreed at that meeting, stated the MFR, that DEA would brief an Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) in Miami about the information and that the AUSA would be asked, in turn, to discuss the matter with the Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division. Further, the MFR stated that the CIA representatives had agreed to make the source of the information available to be debriefed by DEA, the FBI and the AUSA.
Third Report. According to a November 1984 cable to Headquarters, Pastora, Adolfo Chamorro and Roberto Chamorro were scheduled to travel to Miami on that same day and that two ARDE pilots--including Gerardo Duran--had already arrived in Miami. The purpose of this travel was for Pastora and the two Chamorros to meet Morales. Reportedly the pilots were probably going to undertake a narcotics-related flight on behalf of Morales. The report also indicated:
Adolfo Chamorro had established a bank account in Miami and that, to date, Morales had transferred approximately $30,000 to the ARDE.
Morales appeared to be attempting to relocate his operations from the United States to Central America and the Bahamas.
Morales had indicated that he occasionally met with Fidel Castro in Cuba.
According to a December 1984 cable to Headquarters, Pastora and his associates had arrived in Miami and were staying at the home of a Miami-based Cuban-American. Further, Pastora was scheduled to meet with Morales.
December 1984 Sensitive Memorandum Dissemination. In December 1984, the information reported in November was disseminated in Sensitive Memorandum format to 13 senior United States Government, intelligence, and law enforcement officials by position title.
A December 1984 OGC MFR by Assistant General Counsel Betty Ann Smith indicated that OGC and DO officers had met on December 6, 1984 with representatives of DEA and the United States Attorney's Office in Miami and briefed them regarding the information that had been provided in November. Further, according to the OGC MFR, the source of the information had been debriefed by a DEA agent during this same meeting.
According to a December 1984 cable from Headquarters, CIA and DEA agreed during the December 1984 meeting that the source would report on any further ARDE/FRS narcotics trafficking. It was also agreed that subsequent information would be shared by CIA with the DEA and the Department of Justice.
According to a December 1984 cable, Pastora had met with Morales, Sarkis and a Miami-based Cuban-American. Reportedly Pastora said that the meeting with Morales had not gone well. Pastora "did not like Morales' pressuring him to immediately meet [Pastora's] end of their arrangement, which is providing pilots and operational facilities in Costa Rica for Morales' drug operations." No information has been found to indicate whether this information was shared with U.S. law enforcement agencies or disseminated outside the DO.
Eden Pastora
Background. Eden Pastora Gomez, whose "war name" was Commandante Zero, joined the Sandinistas in the early 1970s to seek the overthrow of Somoza. Especially popular after he stormed Somoza's National Palace in 1978, he was nonetheless excluded in 1979 from the Sandinista National Liberation Front's (FSLN's) nine-man Directorate and given relatively minor positions in the post-Somoza Sandinista Government. These setbacks displeased Pastora, and he also claimed to be dismayed by the leftward turn of the Sandinista regime. In 1981 Pastora broke with the Sandinistas, and he went into self-imposed exile in Costa Rica shortly thereafter.
Pastora formed the FRS in early 1982 and allied his group with several other Contra organizations to form the Costa Rican-based ARDE in September 1982. Pastora led ARDE's military struggle against the FSLN until July 1984, when the organization's leadership replaced him. An ARDE spokesman attributed Pastora's replacement to injuries received in the May 1984 bomb attack against him at La Penca, but Pastora's leadership had also been undermined by his refusal to join forces with leaders of the Northern Front. Pastora left ARDE in 1986 and withdrew from the military effort.
Between early 1982 and mid-1984, Pastora was the main recipient of the funds CIA channeled to Contras fighting on the Southern Front. However, the funding allocated by Congress for the Contras had been expended by August 1984, and CIA was forced to cease its material support. More comprehensive congressional restrictions on the Agency's ability to support the Contras took effect in October 1984 and remained in place until December 1985.
The cutoff of U.S. funding led associates of Pastora to begin looking for alternative sources of funds. In October 1984, CIA began receiving the reporting mentioned earlier that Southern Front leaders allied with Pastora had agreed to help Miami-based trafficker Jorge Morales bring drugs into the United States in exchange for his material and financial help to the Southern Front. A subsequent October Headquarters cable instructed those dealing with Pastora:
. . . not to take definitive action to declare the relationship with [Pastora] terminated. Rather, we want to back away from the man leaving him guessing as to the status of his relationship with [CIA]. We do not want to initiate contact with him under any circumstances, unless it is done for the purpose of manipulating him towards some objective clearly consistent with [U.S.] policy in the region.
The Agency's relationship with Pastora was one of its most significant with a Contra leader. While the drug trafficking allegations were a factor in the decision to terminate that relationship, the October 1984 Headquarters cable indicated that the Agency was responding to other factors as well. CIA also judged that the advantages of dealing with Pastora were outweighed by the poor performance of his Southern Front fighting forces, by counterintelligence issues arising from his contacts with the Sandinistas in Managua, and by operational restrictions imposed by Congress.
In November 1984, Headquarters instructed that "no direct action is to be taken with [Pastora]. Ideally, you will be able to avoid him altogether." A November reply stated that only four meetings with Pastora had occurred since July 1984 and that the last of these was on October 18. At the last meeting, it had reportedly been made clear that CIA could no longer provide any support, direct or indirect, to Pastora's organization.
Allegations of Drug Trafficking. An October 1982 cable to Headquarters reported that INS had received information indicating that a meeting of Contra members was to be held in Costa Rica to discuss an exchange in the U.S. of arms for narcotics. A November 1982 cable identified Pastora as one of those who would be attending.
CIA began receiving reporting in October 1984 indicating that associates of Pastora in ARDE had agreed to work with known narcotics trafficker Jorge Morales. That same month Harold Martinez Saenz -- a former deputy FRS commander -- said that he could no longer support ARDE due to Pastora's ineffective leadership. Martinez had also stated that he did not want to become involved in drug and arms smuggling activities and corrupt handling of money, thus inferring that Pastora and his staff were involved in those activities.
Regarding the arrangement allegedly worked out with Morales by Pastora's FRS associates in 1984, Adolfo Chamorro says that Pastora was not aware of Morales' drug trafficking activities until after the meetings in October 1984 and after Pastora himself had met with Morales in December 1984. Cables in 1985 indicate that Pastora "temporarily discontinued" the arrangement with Morales in early January 1985 when he realized the potential political fallout from dealing with narcotics traffickers. Pastora says that he ordered that the planes donated by Morales be returned when he learned that Morales was a drug trafficker.
In April 1985, according to a Headquarters cable, the text of a February Sandinista radio broadcast from Managua alleged that Pastora and his associates were completing construction of three landing strips in the Guanacaste area of Costa Rica for light aircraft to be used for drug trafficking. The drug trafficking was being undertaken, the radio broadcast said, to substitute for the financing that was no longer available in the wake of a Congressional cutoff of Contra funding.
An April 1985 cable to Headquarters reported that an employee of Alpa Airlines had said that the company was concealing cocaine in yucca shipments destined for the United States. The cable reported that two of the five persons reported to be owners of Alpa were Gerardo Duran and David Mayorga.(12) Duran had already been identified as a close associate of Pastora. In addition, one of the planes allegedly used by Alpa Airlines was reported to belong to Pastora and ARDE.
A December 1985 Headquarters cable stated that Adolfo Chamorro had told a Southern Opposition Bloc (BOS) member that a Panamanian, Cesar Rodriguez, was gathering drug money for Pastora. Rodriguez was identified in this cable as a narcotics trafficker who had business ties to Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega.
A January 1986 cable reported to Headquarters that a Costa Rican associate of Pastora reportedly said that he had 200 kilograms of cocaine he wished to use in helping to finance Pastora's Contra activities.
In June 1986 and July-August 1987, CIA was told of a trip to Panama by Jose Davila, Carol Prado and Pastora. During the trip, Pastora reportedly had accepted $10,000 from Cesar Rodriguez, who was described as a narcotics trafficker from Colombia.
CIA Response to Allegations of Drug Trafficking. CIA terminated its relationship with Pastora in October 1984, within two weeks of receiving the first reporting about ARDE's drug-related dealings with Morales. While other factors were involved, the drug trafficking allegations weighed in the decision.
A February 1986 cable requested an inter-Agency review of the information implicating David Mayorga in narcotics trafficking because he was one of Pastora's closest advisors. The same cable noted that this information "needs to be made available to those still bent on seeing that [Pastora] is given . . . funding." No information has been found to indicate that such a review took place.
On March 1986, a Station asked Headquarters for specific instructions regarding what role Pastora was to play in the Contra unification agreement. The Station outlined the drug allegations against Pastora's associates in the cable and stated that:
. . . .
in COS' view, a political or other kind of accommodation with [Pastora] in which [the Agency] plays a known mediating role places [the Agency] is an untenable and unjustifiable position for which, in COS' view, there can be no reasonable or acceptable explanation.
. . . .
We will work through one united command structure, built around the one which is currently in place. We [w]ill not work through the existing FRS structure because, simply put, it is too badly penetrated by Sandinistas and too many of the players have been associated with narcotics smuggling. We will be willing to incorporate members from the FRS structure into t[h]e unified structure, but only after they have been given a thorough security screening
. . . .
Information Sharing with Other U.S. Government Entities. As explained earlier, the reporting tying Pastora and senior members of his group to drug smuggling operations into the United States was disseminated by CIA to a broad range of senior USG intelligence and law enforcement officials.
OCA files indicate that the Agency forwarded to Steven Berry, Associate Counsel of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI), on January 29, 1985, a response to a question regarding Pastora's possible consummation of a working arrangement with Colombian drug dealers. The Agency response noted that all relevant details had been reported in the program summaries to HPSCI. The response added that:
To summarize, intelligence reporting indicates that members of Pastora's organization (FRS) have agreed -- either with Pastora's direct knowledge or tacit approval -- to provide pilots and landing strips inside Costa Rica and Nicaragua to a Miami-based Colombian drug dealer in exchange for financial and material support. Information pertaining to Pastora's involvement in drug trafficking has been forwarded to the appropriate Enforcement Agencies. [sic]
On August 1, 1986, CATF legal officer Louis Dupart forwarded to CATF Chief Fiers, LA Division Chief and LA Division Deputy Chief a MFR for a meeting with HPSCI Staffer Mike O'Neil held on July 9, 1986 in CATF Chief's office at O'Neil's request to discuss another topic. The memorandum stated that, in response to other questions from O'Neil, Chief/CATF said that Pastora had voluntarily renounced his role as a resistance leader.
On April 25, 1986, Headquarters authorized the sharing with DEA of documents that described the October 1984 agreement between ARDE officials and Morales. DEA reportedly planned to use the documents as background information prior to debriefing Adolfo Chamorro in Miami.
In July 1987, a Station reported to Headquarters that, unless advised otherwise, the Station intended to provide the local DEA office with a message from Octaviano Cesar. The message indicated that Marcos Aguado wanted to contact the CIA to provide specific information that tied Eden Pastora to "past drug trafficking."
On July 31, 1987, CATF Chief Alan Fiers testified to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence (SSCI) concerning the allegations that Morales had made in testimony at the Kerry Subcommittee of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) regarding Contra involvement in narcotics trafficking. Fiers discussed what CIA knew about drug trafficking allegations concerning Pastora and a number of former FRS/ARDE members. Fiers stated that the Agency did not have knowledge that Pastora was directly involved in the Morales narcotics deal, but also said:
We have a significant body of evidence with regard to involvement of the former members of ARDE in the Southern Front--Pastora's people being directly involved in cocaine trafficking to the United States. . . .
In addition, according to SSCI transcripts, Fiers used one of his biweekly meetings with the SSCI to share information with that Committee regarding allegations that Southern Front personnel were involved in narcotics trafficking. On October 14, 1987, Fiers stated to the SSCI regarding Pastora's plans to return to Nicaragua:
We frankly don't very much care what [Pastora] does right now. We don't think it would be a terrible problem for us. You must always remember that the Sandinistas know what we know. This guy is a cocaine runner. Period. He ran cocaine. And they know that and we know that and they don't want him back. He's a hot potato for anybody.
A January 4, 1988 MFR drafted by Robert Buckman, OCA, indicated that CATF provided a summary briefing on the Nicaraguan program for SSCI on the same date. At that briefing, Senator Bill Bradley inquired about allegations of drug trafficking, and Fiers responded that "Pastora had been involved with a Colombian trafficker, but the FDN was clean."
Adolfo Jose Chamorro
Background. Adolfo Jose Chamorro Cesar, also known as "Popo," is a Nicaraguan citizen currently residing in Managua. He had U.S. Permanent Resident Alien (PRA) status from 1983 until 1990, when he became the Nicaraguan Consul General in Miami. He is the nephew of Violetta Chamorro, the first elected president of Nicaragua after the Sandinista regime, and the uncle of Roberto "Tito" Chamorro, another Contra figure.
Adolfo Chamorro fought in the revolution to overthrow Somoza. Following Somoza's ouster in 1979, he served as an official of the FSLN. Chamorro's tenure as a government minister was short-lived, however, due to his arrest in 1981 in connection with a counter-revolutionary plot against the Sandinista Government. He then went into exile in Costa Rica. There he joined forces with Eden Pastora, his former FSLN commander, and the anti-Sandinista organization ARDE. In June 1983, Chamorro became the chief of military intelligence for ARDE.
In the summer of 1984, Eden Pastora left the ARDE and reorganized the FRS. Chamorro followed Pastora and became the FRS Deputy Military Commander. In October, Chamorro traveled to Miami to raise funds to support the FRS/ARDE coalition. In October 1984, Chamorro's name was linked with possible drug trafficking. On July 26, 1985, Chamorro broke with Pastora and the FRS and aligned himself with the newly formed BOS.
Allegations of Drug Trafficking. The Southern Front trafficking reports that began to be received in October 1984 stated that Adolfo Chamorro had been instrumental in making the arrangement for drug trafficker Jorge Morales to supply monetary support and aircraft in exchange for the use of FRS pilots. Chamorro reportedly set up a bank account in Miami through which money from Morales could be transferred to FRS/ARDE.
The reporting indicated that Chamorro and Morales had met again on October 30 to discuss their concerns about who within the Contras might have informed CIA about one of the aircraft that Morales had provided. Another meeting between Chamorro and Morales was reportedly planned for late November, this time to include Pastora. Chamorro says he was present at that meeting and that no conditions were attached to Morales' offer of support to the Contra cause.
In January 1986 cables noted that Chamorro had a relationship with Gerardo Duran, an FRS pilot who was arrested in Costa Rica for smuggling cocaine. Although no direct connection could be made between Duran's smuggling activities and Chamorro, the relationship between the two men had been noted with interest by a Central American Station and the local DEA office.
In October 1990, after the Contra war had concluded, the Miami Herald and El Nuevo Herald carried front-page articles charging that Chamorro, who was then serving as the Nicaraguan Consul General in Miami, had trafficked in narcotics from 1984 to 1986. The article stated that a Colombian pilot had testified during the trial of a Medellin drug lord that he had flown arms to Contra forces in Central America and cocaine shipments to Florida and that Chamorro was part of this arms/drugs network.
Chamorro characterizes his meetings with Morales in late 1984 as appropriate since he was the director of logistics for FRS/ARDE. He maintains that the purpose of the meetings was to discuss support to FRS/ARDE and that neither he nor anyone in FRS/ARDE knew at that time of any drug trafficking allegations against Morales. Chamorro states that FRS/ARDE contact with Morales was terminated when the drug allegations became known. Chamorro says that none of the members of FRS/ARDE were involved in drug trafficking and they never knowingly accepted drug money. While Chamorro admits to having met Duran on several occasions, he states that he was not aware of any agreement between Duran and Morales. He explains, however, that Duran may have made his own deal with Morales to ship drugs.
CIA Response to Allegations of Drug Trafficking. By September 1986, Chamorro was one of the five BOS directorate officers. CIA was no longer opposing BOS and was providing support. A September 1986 cable to Headquarters had noted a suggestion made to BOS leader Alfredo Cesar that Chamorro should be interviewed by CIA Security because of his alleged involvement with drug trafficking. In January 1987, Headquarters instructed that it was to be emphasized to Cesar that U.S. Government funds could not be used to support Chamorro until the allegations against him were resolved.
Chamorro thereafter agreed to be interviewed by CIA Security. Based on the results of that interview, CIA Security was led to believe it was highly probable that Chamorro was involved in drug trafficking. A February 1987 cable reported that BOS had accepted Chamorro's resignation and removed him from the BOS payroll.
Information Sharing with Other U.S. Government Entities. As explained earlier, the 1984 Southern Front trafficking reporting was disseminated by CIA to a broad range of senior U.S. Government intelligence and law enforcement officials. The reporting noted that Chamorro had reached an agreement with a Miami-based drug trafficker to provide FRS facilities to transport narcotics in exchange for financial support, aircraft and pilot training, named the narcotics trafficker with whom Chamorro had struck the deal as Jorge Morales, and stated that another meeting was planned between Morales, Chamorro and Pastora.
In January 1986, Chamorro was scheduled to travel to Washington, D.C., as part of a BOS delegation lobbying for support for the Contra movement. CIA Headquarters stated in a January 1986 cable that it was "attempting to highlight [Chamorro's] known involvement in drug activities to convince appropriate parties to forego meetings with BOS in [Washington]." On January 22, 1986, Acting DCI John McMahon sent letters to the Chairmen of the SSCI and HPSCI informing them that Chamorro would be visiting members of Congress during that week. McMahon wrote, "While I would not normally comment on visitors to Congress, I believe it essential that I provide you with some highly derogatory information on Chamorro. . . . Our information indicates that Chamorro. . . has been involved in drug smuggling to the United States." The letter went on to detail Chamorro's association with Jorge Morales. In addition, it gave information about other contacts Chamorro had with suspected drug traffickers and offered a briefing concerning Chamorro's activities.
On January 24, 1986, a Central American Station informed Headquarters that it had discussed Chamorro several times with local DEA officers. The January 8, 1986 arrest of FRS pilot Gerardo Duran on drug charges in Costa Rica, explained the cable, made Chamorro's connection with Duran highly suspect. The Station stated that it had informed DEA of its interest in what Duran might have to say about that relationship when DEA questioned him after his release, which was "expected momentarily due to lack of Costa Rican willingness to prosecute."
On January 6, 1986, the SSCI requested Agency comments regarding a December 27, 1985 article in The Washington Post alleging a link between the Contras and drug trafficking. The information from the 1984 reporting about Chamorro and his dealings with Morales was included in CIA's January 13, 1986 reply.
On April 25, 1986, a Station requested that DEA officials be alerted that Chamorro was due to arrive at Miami Airport after being arrested and expelled for illegally entering Costa Rica. The Station suggested that DEA officers in Miami might want to question Chamorro about possible drug trafficking. According to an April 1986 cable to Headquarters, Chamorro had been interviewed by DEA in Miami on April 25 and named others whom he alleged to be trafficking in narcotics, but did not incriminate himself. DEA chose to maintain contact with Chamorro, but a July 1986 Headquarters cable declined CIA participation, asking only that DEA keep the Agency informed.
On April 15, 1986, a Memorandum entitled "Contra Involvement in Drug Trafficking" was prepared by CIA in response to a request from then-Vice President Bush. This Memorandum, which was delivered to Bush by a CIA officer on April 15, 1986, was a summary of the 1984 Southern Front trafficking reporting concerning Chamorro's and Pastora's contacts with Jorge Morales. The CIA analyst who drafted the Memorandum says that there was no request for follow-up regarding the reporting that was summarized in the Memorandum. The analyst also says she was aware of no further mention of the Contras' involvement in drug trafficking in Agency intelligence disseminations until early 1987.
On January 21, 1987, ADCI Robert Gates provided Morton Abramowitz, Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Intelligence and Research, with a Memorandum that had been prepared by CIA to address all allegations then known to CIA regarding alleged Contra/drug trafficking connections. The Memorandum included the information from 1984 regarding Chamorro and his connections to Morales. DoS responded on February 9, 1987 by demanding that Chamorro be removed from BOS membership, stating that "the law specifically directs that no funds are to be distributed to or through any resistance group that retains in its ranks any individual who has been found to engage in drug smuggling." CATF Chief Fiers replied to DoS, in an undated Memorandum, that CIA had taken immediate steps on learning of Chamorro's affiliation with BOS to have Chamorro removed as a member or affiliate of BOS. Fiers' Memorandum went on to say that CIA believed it was highly probable that Chamorro was involved in drug trafficking, and that all relevant information known to CIA had been shared with DEA and the FBI.
On March 10, 1987, CATF provided CIA's OGC with two cables from February 1987 and March 1987, concerning Chamorro's "suspicious activities." These activities reportedly included dealing in stolen electronic equipment and allegedly warning his employees to inspect all incoming packages for drugs because he thought the FBI was watching him. CATF recommended on a routing sheet attached to the cables that OGC "report this information to the Department of Justice." A handwritten, but unsigned, note attached to the cables stated that the drug-related information was "probably reportable but does [Chamorro] have a direct role in the activity--he hasn't admitted to involvement." No information has been found to indicate how or whether this question was resolved. As explained in further detail below, this information was not reported to DoJ by OGC until January 1988.
On March 5, 1987, according to an OCA Memorandum for the Record written by Robert Buckman, CATF Chief Fiers briefed the SSCI on the situation in Nicaragua. Fiers told the Committee that CIA believed it was highly probable that Adolfo Chamorro was involved in drug trafficking and that BOS risked losing its U.S. aid "if it did not fully sever its ties with Chamorro."
On July 31, 1987, CATF Chief Fiers testified before the SSCI and stated that CIA had "unimpeachable" information that Chamorro had planned to meet Morales in November 1984.
On January 5, 1988, CIA General Counsel David Doherty sent a letter to William Weld, Assistant Attorney General for DoJ's Criminal Division, informing him that the Agency was forwarding information concerning Adolfo Chamorro in accordance with Section 1.7(a) of Executive Order 12333. The letter stated that Chamorro might be involved in smuggling drugs into the United States and that the Agency had information that Chamorro might have been involved in the sale of stolen electronic merchandise in Miami. The letter went on to say that "although this non-employee crime is not required to be reported, . . ." the Agency thought it sufficiently serious to share the information with DoJ. The General Counsel's letter was brought to the attention of the Iran-Contra Independent Counsel and DEA by Associate Attorney General Stephen S. Trott as an enclosure to a March 17, 1988 letter to Associate Independent Counsel Guy Struve.
Roberto Jose Chamorro
Background. Roberto "Tito" Jose Chamorro, a nephew of both former Nicaraguan President Violetta Chamorro and prominent Contra leader Adolfo Chamorro, was a Contra commander associated with the Southern Front forces. CIA records indicate that Roberto Chamorro first came to the attention of the Agency in 1984 when he was FRS Chief of Operations under Pastora's command. As of mid-1985, Chamorro reportedly was one of the FRS commanders who favored unification with other member groups in the anti-Sandinista forces. However, he reportedly believed that Pastora would have to be removed from military command for this to occur. By August 28, 1986, Chamorro had aligned himself with Alfredo Cesar's BOS organization.
According to a March 1, 1989 Department of Defense (DoD) cable, Roberto Chamorro "retired from the fight" in 1986 after learning that he would not be a commander in UNO.
Allegations of Drug Trafficking. The October and November 1984 reporting indicated that Roberto Chamorro--along with Adolfo Chamorro and Eden Pastora--would be attending a late November meeting with indicted drug trafficker Jorge Morales. No information has been found to indicate that Roberto Chamorro was actually present when the meeting took place in December 1984.