Alleged drug dealer captured in Venezuela appears in court

AUGUSTA - The alleged ring leader of a multimillion-dollar drug operation appeared in federal court Wednesday, one day after being apprehended in Venezuela. <br> <br> James S. Springette, who was one of the FBI&#39;s Top 10 fugitives, was arrested Tuesday by Venezuelan authorities near the city of Caracas based on information supplied by authorities in Georgia, the U.S. Justice Department said. <br> <br> Springette, 42, is accused of leading a violent, Caribbean-based drug smuggling operation that imported tons of cocaine into the United States from Colombia during the 1990s. <br> <br> At his initial appearance in U.S. District Court, Magistrate W. Leon Barfield outlined the basis of the allegations and told Springette he wanted him to be represented by a defense attorney before he formally accepted pretrial detention. <br> <br> Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Michael Faulkner, who has been the lead prosecutor in the case since an indictment in 1998, said the government will request that Springette remain in custody pending trial. <br> <br> On Jan. 30, 1999, Springette was arrested and jailed in Medellin, Colombia. He escaped March 1, 2000, before the United States could complete the extradition. <br> <br> He is the last of seven people named in the largest drug case ever prosecuted in Augusta to appear in court. Francis Mouland, was a fugitive until his capture in March in St. Catherine, Jamaica. Mouland is awaiting trial. <br> <br> The other five people named in the indictment pleaded guilty and were sentenced to prison last year.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/11/187979