APNewsBreak: DEA's Colombia post jarred by misconduct probes
Source: Associated Press
Jim Mustian and Joshua Goodman, Associated Press
Updated 11:12 pm CDT, Wednesday, October 3, 2018
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — New turmoil has roiled the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration's high-profile office in Colombia, where at least three agents have left in recent months amid investigations into alleged misconduct, including accusations that one passed secrets to drug cartels and another used government resources to hire prostitutes.
The DEA's top-ranking official in South America, who was brought in three years ago in the wake of a scandal involving agents participating in sex parties with prostitutes, is under investigation after the agency received an anonymous complaint saying he directed Colombian drivers working for the U.S. Embassy in Bogota "to procure sex workers," according to a copy of the complaint obtained by The Associated Press and one current and one former law enforcement official. The officials spoke to the AP on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss an ongoing investigation.
Richard Dobrich, a regional director who is retiring from the DEA next month to take a private sector job, said in a statement and interview with the AP that the complaint is without merit and he would have to be a "complete idiot" to have anything to do with prostitution given the office's history. He also denied his departure has anything to do with the accusation.
"There is nothing to this — zero," Dobrich said of the anonymous complaint, adding he wants another probe into how it got out. Dobrich said he believes this "attempted assassination on my reputation" is a setup, perhaps by a disgruntled former DEA employee.
Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/DEA-s-high-profile-Colombia-post-roiled-by-13278810.php