Chepita Blandon
Danilo Blandón's wife, identified by the DEA as closely involved in his trafficking activities, who was arrested in 1992 and had all charges dropped when her husband agreed to become a DEA informant.
Chepita Blandón was the wife of Danilo Blandón who was identified by the DEA as being closely involved in her husband's cocaine trafficking activities.1
Trafficking Activities
Chepita was a member of the wealthy Murillo family of Nicaragua. Her uncle, Orlando Murillo, was an economist who served on the board of Nicaragua's Central Bank before the revolution and was a suspected money launderer for the Blandón organization. The DEA opened a NADDIS file on Chepita on March 15, 1985, after she was reported as a "member of a cocaine distribution organization." Despite this, she was granted U.S. political asylum later that same year.2
Arrest and Cooperation
Chepita was arrested alongside Blandón on May 5, 1992, as part of a conspiracy case that carried a mandatory life sentence. All charges against her were dropped when Blandón agreed to become a full-time paid DEA informant. She was subsequently made a naturalized U.S. citizen.3
Role in Drug Operations
Chepita was involved in the financial operations of Blandón's trafficking network. After Blandón moved to Miami, Ross wired drug money to Florida in Chepita's name, which Blandón said was paid to Roger Sandino. Chepita also called Ricky Ross to invite him to dinner and pressure him to find someone to sell drugs, as part of the DEA sting operation that led to Ross's arrest.4
Sources
- Webb, Gary. Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion. Seven Stories Press, 1998. Cast of Characters ↩
- Webb, Gary. Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion. Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 10: "Teach a man a craft and he's liable to practice it" ↩
- Webb, Gary. Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion. Seven Stories Press, 1998. Prologue: "It was like they didn't want to know" ↩
- Webb, Gary. Dark Alliance: The CIA, the Contras, and the Crack Cocaine Explosion. Seven Stories Press, 1998. Chapter 24: "They're gonna forget I was a drug dealer" ↩
Local network
Chepita Blandon's direct connections. Click any node to navigate, drag to pan, scroll (or pinch) to zoom. + 2‑hop expands the neighborhood one level further.