Eight members of an alleged international heroin syndicate have been charged in the United States. They were arrested by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Four of the suspects are being held in Ghana. The arrest follows a collaborative work between the American DEA and Ghana’s NACOB. Online news portal, Ghana web reports that the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia said Neil MacBride told après conference that the eight persons represent not only the couriers but also the command and control of the group. Joy News reports indicate the indictment cites Edward MaCauley (aka Cudjoe Opoku), as the leader of the group. Only seven of the 8 persons have been arrested. The DEA declined to acknowledge which of them is not in custody. Four are said to be in custody in Ghana and will be returned to the United States to face charges. The others are Nuru; Frank Ehiobe; Fred Oppong Brobbey; William Andoh, Theophilus Akwei, and Joseph Duodo. Each was charged with conspiracy to import heroin; other charges include distribution for the purpose of unlawful importation of heroin and possession with intent to distribute heroin, according to the indictment. Each of the charges in the indictment carries a mandatory minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison, if convicted. Speaking at a press conference in the District, MacBride said the group smuggled heroin on at least three separate commercial airline flights into Dulles. The indictment said Matilda Antwi is a courier for the organization, and she was paid to bring about 1.2 kilograms of heroin into the United States on a United Airlines flight in September 2010. MacBride said the smugglers used special bags hidden in the liner of their suitcases to sneak the drugs past Customs. MacBride said the investigation into the ring, which he believes to be no older than one year old, is ongoing and that more charges are possible. DEA officials believe that this is an example of the growing trafficking industry in West Africa. A release from the U.S. Attorney's Office described another case in which Yvonne Ansah Owusu, 26, of Alexandria, Va., was arrested on May 29 after U.S. Customs and Border Protection Officers allegedly discovered 3.3 kilograms of heroin hidden within the lining of her luggage as she departed a flight from Accra, to Dulles. According to court records, she allegedly told law enforcement that she was promised $15,000 to carry a suitcase with heroin from Ghana to the United States. She is scheduled for a jury trial on Aug. 23, 2011, and also faces a mandatory minimum of 10 years and a maximum of life in prison, if convicted. U.S. officials worked with the Ghana police and the Ghanaian Narcotics Control Board during the investigation. Source: Joy News/Ghana