Viktor Bout the "Merchant of Death"

BANGKOK, Thailand (AFP) – Thai police arrested Viktor Bout, a notorious Russian arms dealer accused of supplying guns and ammunition that have fuelled brutal conflicts around the world, US and Thai officials said.

Reports have linked Bout to civil wars in Africa and he is said to have helped arm Afghanistan’s Taliban militia, Osama bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network, Marxist rebels in South America and Liberian warlord Charles Taylor.

One British minister has called the Russian the “Merchant of Death” and the pressure group Amnesty International has alleged that at one time he operated a fleet of more than 50 planes ferrying weapons shipments around Africa.

In Washington, US officials said Bout had been arrested after sources working for the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) posing as Colombian guerrillas seeking to buy arms mounted a sting operation.

“We were able to infiltrate his criminal organisation, to gain access to some of his key associates, said a DEA official who asked not to be named.

April 26, 2005 – For the first time the U.S. government, in its press release, confirms Bout’s dealings with the Taliban, an assertion that was often questioned in U.S. circles. Today’s release says that “information available to the U.S. government shows that Bout profited $50 million from supplying the Taliban with military equipment when they ruled Afghanistan.” The full release can be found here and the full list of designated companies can be found here.

For years U.S. citizen Richard Chichakli, Bout’s U.S. financial handler, son of a former Syrian president and self-proclaimed childhood friend of Osama bin Laden, has helped Bout on many fronts, while happily residing in Richardson, Tx. Texas. More info here.