Former Afghan official arrested on U.S. drug and weapons charges

A former member of Afghanistan's National Assembly was arrested and charged with conspiring to import heroin and methamphetamine into the United States and with firearm-related offenses, according to court documents unsealed Friday. The individual, identified in the documents as a former general in Afghanistan's paramilitary Border Force and a former deputy speaker in the National Assembly, faces one count of conspiracy to import narcotics and two counts of conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices in the Southern District of New York.

He made an initial appearance in a New York courtroom on Friday and was ordered detained pending trial.

Investigation details An affidavit from a Drug Enforcement Administration special agent states that negotiations with a confidential source began in November 2024. The following month, the individual allegedly sold a two-kilogram test shipment of methamphetamine in South Africa for $14,000.

Negotiations continued into 2025 for the sale of hundreds of kilograms of heroin and methamphetamine along with hundreds of assault rifles, heavy machine guns, pistols, rocket-propelled grenades, grenades, and thousands of rounds of ammunition. In February 2025, the informant indicated plans to purchase 500 to 600 kilograms of narcotics for sale in the United States.

The individual provided price quotes for the requested weapons and stated he could deliver them within three days of receiving a delivery location.

Arrest and extradition In April 2025, the individual attended a meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, believing it was with members of a drug trafficking organization. The meeting was instead with multiple DEA confidential sources. Kenyan authorities arrested him after the meeting, and he was extradited to the United States on Friday.