Federal authorities said Thursday they had smashed a 30-member cocaine-smuggling ring whose leader buried $43 million in drug money on a farm in Puerto Rico. The case caused a sensation last spring when it was disclosed that residents of the Vega Baja coastal area had unearthed barrels filled with $10, $20 and $100 bills and kept their windfall secret for weeks. In all, residents made off with $11 million, which they put in their bank accounts and bought everything from VCRs to luxury homes before the authorities stepped in, according to the FBI. In a statement Thursday, the FBI said it had arrested or issued warrants for 30 alleged members of the drug ring that amassed the buried treasure in drug-running operations from Colombia since 1985. Fifteen suspects were charged Thursday in U.S. District Court in San Juan and four others were already in jails in Puerto Rico and New York, said FBI spokeswoman Juana Arriazola. Another suspect arrested Thursday in New York was awaiting extradition, and two others were charged in Puerto Rico on Wednesday, she said. Among the eight suspects still at large were reputed drug kingpin Ramon Torres Gonzalez, on whose farm the cash-filled barrels were hidden, and Iris Janet Concepcion Perez, alleged co-leader of the drug ring, the FBI said. All 30 are accused under a 27-count federal indictment with criminal enterprise and conspiracy to import and distribute controlled substances. The indictment was returned Nov. 1 by a federal grand jury in Puerto Rico. If convicted, the suspects face a minimum penalty of 60 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison, as well as a fine of up to $10 million. U.S. Magistrate Jesus Castellano released seven of the defendants who came into court Thursday on bail totaling $625,000 and jailed the others without bail. He set a court hearing for Nov. 21. The indictment alleges that Torres and his drug organization had imported and distributed more than 4.5 tons of Colombian cocaine into Puerto Rico and the United States since 1985. William Mitchell, head of the San Juan office of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, said most of the cocaine was shipped to Puerto Rico by way of neighboring Dominican Republic. ``Some (cocaine) was for the local market, but the majority went to the states, principally New York and Philadelphia,'' he said. The drug ring amassed a fortune, of which $43 million in cash was buried in 22 plastic drums on Torres' 9.7-acre farm in Vega Baja, about 35 miles east of San Juan, authorities said. The FBI got involved in the case in April after authorities learned that local residents had been using large amounts of cash to buy houses, cars, VCRs, motorcycles, boats and jewelry. Residents took $11 million of the money before Torres allegedly removed and hid the remaining $32 million, which has not been found, the FBI said. The FBI said it had confiscated $4.5 million in cash and property purchased with the stolen money. None of the residents were arrested.
