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Tanzanian extradited to US over Sh145 billion Mexican cartel arms plot

What you need to know:

  • He now faces trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia alongside co-defendants from Bulgaria and Kenya. If convicted, he could face between 10 years and life in prison.

A Tanzanian national has been named among four foreign suspects accused of conspiring to supply one of the world’s most violent drug cartels with a cache of military-grade weapons worth $58 million (Sh145 billion).

Subiro Osmund Mwapinga, was arrested in Accra, Ghana, on April 8, 2025, after U.S. authorities issued an urgent Interpol “diffusion” alert. Ghanaian police, acting on intelligence from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), detained him and later extradited him to the United States on July 25.

He now faces trial in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia alongside co-defendants from Bulgaria and Kenya. If convicted, he could face between 10 years and life in prison.

Tanzania’s ministry of foreign affairs confirmed to The Citizen that it has been informed and is making a close follow up on the case including Mwapinga’s extradition to the US.

How the conspiracy unfolded

According to an indictment unsealed by the US Department of Justice, Mwapinga was allegedly recruited in late 2022 by Ugandan national Lt (rtd) Michael Katungi Mpeirwe, who in turn had been brought into the network by Kenyan Elisha Odhiambo Asumo.

Asumo was allegedly recruited by the cartel’s initial contact, Bulgarian arms broker Peter Dimitrov Mirchev.

The four are accused of attempting to sell advanced weaponry to the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) – an offshoot of the Sinaloa cartel designated by the U.S. as a foreign terrorist organisation.

The cartel’s wishlist included ZU-23, the anti-aircraft weapon system – a twin-barrel autocannon capable of firing multiple rounds per second – used to neutralise low-flying aircraft, drones and armoured vehicles.

Other items on the list were machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades, battle tanks, in addition to large quantities of small arms.

Prosecutors say Mirchev, the alleged mastermind, maintained a “weapons log” listing the cartel’s requirements. The group hoped to deliver the arms via falsified documentation to make the shipments appear as legitimate exports.


The ‘test run’ that exposed the network

Mwapinga’s primary role, prosecutors allege, was to help obtain a fraudulent Tanzanian End-User Certificate (EUC) claiming that a shipment of 50 AK-47 rifles and ammunition was intended for Tanzanian security forces.

The shipment was blocked. In reality, the weapons were allegedly bound for the CJNG as part of a trial run before the larger deal.

The forged EUC stated that the weapons were intended for Tanzania and would not be re-exported without approval from Bulgaria — a falsehood intended to satisfy international arms control requirements.

Court records indicate Mwapinga and Asumo were both paid “thousands of dollars” at different times to attend meetings with cartel representatives in March 2023.

During one such meeting, the cartel allegedly proposed using their East African contacts to facilitate cocaine trafficking through the region.


Global reach, local implications

The indictment says the weapons were meant to strengthen the cartel’s drug operations, which have been linked to mass killings, assassinations, and violent attacks on Mexican police and military convoys. The CJNG has a footprint across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa.

US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, Erik Siebert, and Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Special Agent Louis D’Ambrosio say in the indictment that the arrests are part of a campaign aimed at dismantling drug cartels and reducing illegal immigration into the US.

“This case is part of Operation Take Back America, a nationwide drive that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organisations (TCOs), and protect our communities from perpetrators of violent crime,” the indictment reads.

The case has raised questions about how the traffickers obtained official Tanzanian arms documentation.

Mwapinga’s co-accused face similar charges of arms trafficking, drug conspiracy, and providing material support to a foreign terrorist organisation. Mirchev is in Spanish custody awaiting extradition, Asumo remains in a Moroccan prison fighting extradition to the U.S., and Mpeirwe is still at large.

According to reports in Ugandan media Mpeirwe has since denied U.S. charges linking him to an alleged $58 million international arms conspiracy to supply the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).

Lt Katungi currently the director of external affairs for the Patriotic League of Uganda (PLU)also its founding director , a political pressure group that has gained attention for its vocal support of First Son Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba as a potential successor to President Museveni.

Each faces a minimum of 10 years in prison if convicted — and the possibility of life behind bars.