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New
Museum
Exhibit on
Narco-
Terrorism
(2002)
As a continuation of the
effort to educate Ameri­
cans about the historic
and strong link between
terrorists and drug trafficking,
DEA opened a new
exhibit at the Headquarters Museum
called “Target America: Traf-
fickers, Terrorists, and You.” The exhibit is housed
in a new 1,500 square foot addition to the DEA Museum.
Administrator Hutchinson opened the exhibit at a ceremony
on September 3, 2002, and was joined by former New York
City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Attorney General John Ashcroft,
and ONDCP Director John Walters.
The exhibit opens with a sculpture composed of rubble and
artifacts from the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, and it
uses the events of September 11th as a starting point for the
historic story of the connection between the violent drug trade
and terror from the Silk Road in the 11th century to the present.
Interactive kiosks allow visitors to follow the trafficking of
drugs, the movement of money, and the use of terrorism worldwide.
Photo essays and artifacts detail the impact of drugs
and terrorism, show individuals and groups responsible for
terrorist acts, examine America’s response to drugs and terrorism,
and present visitors information on getting active with an
anti-drug message in their communities to allow them to deny
funding to terrorists.
DEA Turkey Seizes
Worldwide Record 7.4 Tons
of Morphine Base (2002)
On March 31, 2002, Turkish Jandarma officials, accompanied
by Istanbul Resident Office personnel, arrested15 individuals
and seized 7.4 tons of morphine base. The morphine base was
discovered beneath piles of hay during the search of a warehouse
located in Hendick, Turkey, approximately 120 miles
east of Istanbul. This seizure marked the culmination of five
days of arrests and searches executed by the Jandarma in
conjunction with DEA, targeting a multifaceted organization
led by Attila Ozyildirim. This organization was involved in the
production, transportation, and distribution of multi-hundred
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The exhibit stayed at the DEA Museum
through August 2003, then began a nationwide
tour with planned stops in New York,
Chicago, Detroit, Dallas, and Los Angeles.
Sean Fearns, DEA Museum Director, envisioned
the exhibit as one that will travel to museums all over
the United States. The first stop will be the Dallas Science
Museum, with an opening in September 2003, then to Chicago,
Detroit, and New York with other cities to follow.
kilograms quantities of morphine base and heroin. Intelligence
indicated that Ozyildirim and his associates maintained
strong connections with other significant Turkish traffickers
as well as sources of supply in Afghanistan and Iran.
Although large shipments of morphine base and heroin are
common in Turkey, according to the Jandarma, this was the
largest seizure of morphine base ever in the country. In addition,
it was one of the largest seizures of opiates in Europe.
During all of 2000, according to the U.S. Department of State,
Turkish authorities seized approximately 1.7 metric tons of
morphine base. This single seizure is almost six metric tons
larger than the annual total for 2000. Given the 1:1 ratio for the
conversion of heroin from morphine base, this amount of
morphine base would have provided a significant amount of
heroin to the European market.