Florida

Florida served as a major hub for both Cocaine trafficking and Contra political activity during the 1980s, with Miami functioning as the primary center of operations on the U.S. East Coast. The state's proximity to the Caribbean and Central America made it a natural transshipment point for drugs flowing north and weapons flowing south.¹

Contra Operations in Miami

After leaving Los Angeles, Danilo Blandón relocated to Miami and invested drug profits in a string of companies. His restaurant La Parrilla was co-owned by Somoza's former counterinsurgency expert Major General Gustavo Medina and Donald Barrios, an FDN supporter. The restaurant became a gathering place for Contra leaders and the site of pro-Contra demonstrations. Blandón's Alpha II Rent-a-Car business began outside Miami International Airport and spread to 24 locations. His immigration lawyer was deeply involved with the FDN's Miami support network, arranging travel papers for rebel soldiers.²

Money Laundering

An Federal Bureau of Investigation informant revealed that Blandón's millions were being driven to Florida in motor homes and taken to the Fontainebleu Apartment Complex between Miami and Sweetwater, which had been purchased for Blandón by Orlando Murillo. Murillo, Somoza's former Central Bank appointee, operated as the principal money launderer for Blandón and Meneses out of the Government Security Bank in Coral Gables. DIACSA, a Miami aircraft company run by a Cuban Bay of Pigs veteran, served as a cover company used by the Costa Rican Contras to secretly buy aircraft and plot drug flights.³

Cocaine Entry Point

The Bolivian and Colombian cocaine supplying the Blandón-Meneses ring came into Miami before being distributed to the West Coast. Roger Sandino was busted in April 1986 as part of the biggest cocaine case on the Atlantic Coast, when DEA agents in Norfolk, Virginia, charged him and fourteen others with conspiracy to import 700 pounds of cocaine. The Torres brothers described airfields in Florida where Contra cocaine was allegedly flown in under armed guard.⁴