BILL ALEXANDER, M.C. 233 CANNON HOUSE OFFICE BUILDING
ARKANSAS WASHINGTON, DC 20515
(202) 225-4078
COMMITTEE ON
APPROPRIATIONS
CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES
January 26, 1989
Gov. Bill Clinton
State Capitol
Little Rock, Arkansas
Dear Bill:
The investigation into alleged drugs and gun smuggling at Mena
airport can be cleared up by a local grand jury that will require
state funds. Deputy Prosecutor Charles Black of Mt. Ida, the state
police and congressional investigators are interested in convening
such a grand jury, which is probably the only way that the matter
will be resolved and laid to rest once and for all.
Black estimates that about $25,000 will be required, because
witnesses will have to be brought in from out of state. This figure
cannot be paid for out of local resources. Black knows of witnesses
who will testify that planes loaded with guns went to Central America
and returned loaded with drugs.
Certain DEA agents have stated that the late convicted smuggler Barry
Seal was flying weapons to Central America in violation of U.S.
foreign policy and in return, the federal government secretly allowed
Seal to smuggle drugs back into the United States. Congressman Bill
Hughes' Subcommittee on Crime has learned independently that at the
time Seal was working on the famous Nicaraguan "sting" operation for
the DEA and the CIA in 1984, he was still running drugs. Sources in
Mena indicate that smuggling activities at Mena continued after
Seal's murder in 1986 and are still continuing.
My involvement in the case stems from two sources: I initiated a
General Accounting Office investigation into drug trafficking from
Latin America to the United States, and secondly, because of my
position as the senior ranking Democrat on the Appropriations
Subcommittee that handles Justice Department funding.
Prosecutor Black, State Police Investigator Russell Welch, and others
who have been involved in the investigation have done an exemplary
job, but they have been frustrated by the failure of some federal
officials to proceed with the case. The only way to get the matter
cleared up is to convene the local grand jury. Otherwise it will
continue to fester and be a thorn in the side of local, state and
congressional resources. I hope you will grant Mr. Black's request
for funding in this matter.
With kindest regards, I am.
Sincerely,
BILL ALEXANDER
Member of Congress
