The undercover drug sting operation lasted for more than two years and nabbed 58 people   VIDEO CNN's Susan Candiotti has details on the case and shows undercover video shot during the sting. Windows Media 28K 80K

August 25, 1999
Web posted at: 2:15 p.m. EDT (1815 GMT)

In this story: The suspects Heroin in pilot's coffee Airline responds Suspects were couriers Easy access Hand grenades RELATED STORIES, SITES

MIAMI (CNN) -- Dozens of American Airlines employees and contract food service workers face drug smuggling conspiracy charges following an undercover operation that used fake cocaine and lasted more than two years.

Federal agents and Miami police fanned out before dawn Wednesday to make arrests at several locations, including Miami International Airport.

The 58 suspects named in federal indictments are accused of plotting to smuggle drugs from South America into the United States or acting as couriers within the United States to deliver drugs from Miami to other cities.

Some also face weapons charges, said U.S. Attorney Thomas Scott.

Thirteen of the people arrested work for Sky Chefs, a company that supplies food served aboard airplanes

Most of suspects are American Airline baggage handlers and ramp agents, leading authorities to call one part of their lengthy investigation "Operation Ramp Rats."

Another 13 of the people indicted are contract employees who also have access to American Airlines planes. They work for a company called Sky Chefs that supplies food served aboard airplanes.

The indictments also name two federal inspectors -- one from the Immigration and Naturalization Service and one from the Department of Agriculture -- as well as a Broward County (Florida) Sheriff's officer who worked part time as a baggage handler.

Scott said the undercover investigation -- using fake drugs -- got under way in April 1997 after evidence was uncovered showing that real drugs were being smuggled at Miami International Airport.

Because the "drugs" involved in "Operation Ramp Rats" were not real, the suspects escaped the most serious drug charges. Instead, they were charged with conspiracy and possession with intent to distribute.

A separate portion of the investigation -- dealing with food service employees and given the name "Operation Sky Chef" -- began in April of last year after an American Airlines pilot commented that the coffee he drank aboard an aircraft tasted weak.

"Heroin was literally found in coffee packages that had been placed aboard the airplane in Colombia and flown (to the United States)," Scott said. "Based upon that, it became obvious to law enforcement officers that either Sky Chef or American was involved in (drug) distribution."

Ramp agents and workers are accused of using employee passes and airport access to meet planes carrying drugs

American Airlines, based in Fort Worth, Texas, said it cooperated in the investigation and would continue to do so.

"While we are disturbed that a small group of employees were part of this smuggling ring, their activities have been under surveillance by the federal government and the company for some time," said airline security chief Larry Wansley.

"This is a company with zero tolerance for illegal drugs," he told reporters.

Authorities told CNN the undercover operation illustrates widespread corruption among American Airlines baggage and ramp employees.

Wansley, however, insisted that only a small group of employees was involved. The company, he said, was not expecting any disruption of service.

No one among American Airlines management employees, pilots or flight attendants was said to have been involved in the alleged smuggling ring.

Sources said 300 kilograms (661 pounds) of phony cocaine was used in the investigation and more than $300,000 paid to suspects. "We didn't run out of defendants," said one source. "We ran out of money."

Law enforcement sources tell CNN that ramp agents unloaded what they thought was cocaine from American Airlines flights arriving from Colombia, Chile, Ecuador and Bolivia.

It's alleged they delivered the phony cocaine to pre-arranged contacts working undercover for law enforcement agencies.

Suspects would then act as couriers, and sometimes arrange to have off-duty co-workers carry the dummy cocaine on domestic American Airlines flights to several U.S. cities including New York, Washington, Baltimore and Philadelphia.

Sources say the packages weighed 5-15 kilograms (11-33 pounds) each and couriers allegedly earned up to $3,000 per trip.

Sources say the ramp agents and other workers used their employee passes and airport access -- while both on and off-duty -- to meet planes carrying the fake contraband.

The airline agents allegedly would either drive the earmarked "drug" baggage off the airport property to the employee parking lot, or bypass U.S. Customs inspection by directly taking the baggage to a domestic baggage claim area for pre-arranged pickup.

To deliver the phony cocaine to other U.S. cities without having the drugs detected, airline workers would take advantage of the access afforded by their employee ID to use employee-only doors and bypass security checkpoints, including X-ray machines, sources say.

In addition their drug investigation, federal undercover agents also approached suspects about shipping weapons, including military-style explosives.

In one case, Scott said, an American Airlines employee carrying fake cocaine aboard a flight to Philadelphia also helped transport hand grenades, a handgun and ammunition which had been placed inside a briefcase.

Unknown to the suspect, the grenades and gun had been disabled by law enforcement authorities.

Correspondent Susan Candiotti contributed to this report.

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.