A former security officer at the U.S. Embassy in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, has been extradited to the United States to face charges related to a cocaine importation conspiracy. Jairo Eliezer Arias Caceres was brought from the Dominican Republic following the unsealing of an indictment that accuses him of organizing a scheme to bring cocaine into the U.S. Arias Caceres is scheduled for his initial court appearance before U.S. District Judge Robert W. Lehrburger, with the case assigned to Judge Gregory H. Woods.
“Jairo Eliezer Arias Caceres allegedly orchestrated a cocaine smuggling scheme while employed as a security officer at our U.S. Embassy in the Dominican Republic and as a former security officer at the airport in Santo Domingo,” said U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton. “While Arias Caceres was supposed to be protecting our diplomats and embassy staff from danger, he was allegedly busy endangering New Yorkers by pumping illegal drugs into our community. Abuse of a position of national trust to traffic in deadly narcotics shocks the sensibilities of New Yorkers and the women and men of our office are committed to bringing those who abuse that trust to justice.”
“The charges against Jairo Arias Caceres are the result of an extensive investigation into a significant narcotics importation conspiracy, led by our Border Enforcement Security Task Force (BEST),” said HSI Newark Special Agent in Charge Michael S. McCarthy. “In coordination with HSI Santo Domingo and multiple federal partners, this investigation successfully dismantled a sophisticated trafficking network responsible for moving dangerous narcotics from the Dominican Republic into the United States. HSI remains committed to protecting the American public by targeting and disrupting the transnational criminal organizations that seek to bring illicit drugs into our communities.”
According to court documents, between April 2023 and December 2023, while working at the U.S. Embassy, Arias Caceres ran an operation using couriers who hid cocaine inside packages made to look like items purchased from duty free shops at Santo Domingo Airport before transporting them through airports in New York.
Before his time at the embassy—where he worked from 2018 until 2025—Arias Caceres spent more than seven years as a security officer at Santo Domingo Airport. Authorities allege he used connections from both roles to facilitate drug smuggling activities.
Investigators say Arias Caceres recruited couriers, arranged their travel logistics, coordinated handoffs with other airport employees, and served as their main contact throughout each trip.
Arias Caceres faces one count of conspiracy to import narcotics into the United States—a charge carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of ten years’ imprisonment and up to life if convicted.
Sentencing guidelines are determined by Congress but will ultimately be decided by a judge if there is conviction.
The investigation involved multiple agencies including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York; Drug Enforcement Administration’s New York Division; HSI Santo Domingo; Customs and Border Protection Strategic Partnership for Enforcement and Analytical Response Port of New York/New Jersey; CBP Air & Marine Operations; and U.S. Marshals Service Office of International Operations based in Dominican Republic.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs played an important role in securing Arias Caceres’s arrest and extradition.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) operation that focuses on disrupting major criminal groups through coordinated efforts among law enforcement agencies nationwide (https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF).
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jackie Delligatti and Katherine Cheng are prosecuting this case within SDNY’s Narcotics Unit.
It should be noted that all allegations remain accusations unless proven otherwise in court.
