TRIAL OFFERS 'MIAMI VICE' SCENARIO

TAMPA - The arrest of Joaquin Mario Valencia-Trujillo climaxed one of
the biggest U.S. drug investigations ever.

Now jurors in a Tampa federal courtroom will decide the fate of the
man authorities say was a leader in the notorious Cali Cartel.

Valencia-Trujillo, 48, was the main target of Operation Panama
Express, an international drug trafficking investigation based in Tampa.

Authorities think Valencia-Trujillo was responsible for shipping 100
tons of cocaine a year into the United States, or about 20 percent of
what came into the country.

When Valencia-Trujillo was extradited two years ago, a Drug
Enforcement Administration official compared him to Pablo Escobar, the
late leader of the Medellin Cartel. Valencia-Trujillo has pleaded not
guilty to charges including drug trafficking and money laundering.
Some of the charges can bring life sentences, but U.S. officials
agreed as part of the extradition that he would receive no more than
40 years in prison.

After several delays, jury selection is scheduled to start today in
the courtroom of U.S. District Judge Elizabeth Kovachevich. Opening
arguments are scheduled to start Monday. The trial is expected to last
six months.

Authorities said Valencia-Trujillo had assets of $500 million. The
U.S. government froze his assets, so he is being defended by
court-appointed lawyers, Matthew Farmer and Ronald Kurpiers II.

Life At Casa Blanca

Valencia-Trujillo lived in an extravagant compound known as Casa
Blanca, or the White House. He is married to a Colombian skating star
and raised rare show horses.

He also operated a paper company called Unipapel, which authorities
allege was a front for his drug operations.

The prosecution says Valencia-Trujillo, also known as Oscar Martinez,
was the Colombian cocaine supplier to Miami drug lords Salvador
Magluta and Augusto Guillermo "Willie" Falcon. Prosecutors say the two
made $2 billion smuggling cocaine in the 1980s, according to The
Associated Press.

Politically connected in Colombia, Valencia-Trujillo, 48, fought
extradition for more than a year after his January 2003 arrest.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Ruddy has alleged in court papers, for
instance, that a Colombian prosecutor lost his job after admitting he
improperly helped Valencia-Trujillo's defense by providing an
affidavit from a witness in exchange for a promise of money or a job.

The defense responded that the prosecutor in question, Daniel Serrano,
publicly denied allegations that he was fired for taking a bribe from
Valencia-Trujillo.

As he awaited extradition in a Colombian jail, Valencia-Trujillo was
on a hunger strike, according to Colombian newspapers. Since he
arrived in Tampa, his attorneys have waged a vigorous legal battle,
successfully limiting the prosecution on several fronts. For instance,
although the prosecution alleges Valencia-Trujillo's drug trafficking
dates to the 1980s, he cannot be convicted of any charges based on
activities before Dec. 17, 1997. The Colombian Constitution prohibits
extradition for charges before that date.

However, the prosecution does intend to try to offer evidence that
covers events before that to support allegations that Valencia-
Trujillo's crimes continued.

The trial is expected to feature testimony of violence, international
intrigue, betrayal and vast amounts of money. The trial likely will
feature a parade of international drug traffickers who were captured
and turned informant.

Cocaine By Sea

The star witness is likely to be Jose Castrillon-Henao, who has
admitted running Valencia-Trujillo's maritime smuggling operation.
Castrillon-Henao is living in the witness protection program after
having turned informant in 1999, three years after he was arrested and
jailed in Panama.

Authorities say Castrillon-Henao became central to Valencia-Trujillo's
success in the drug business by establishing an effective route for
maritime cocaine smuggling.

Castrillon-Henao's story was told in detail in a 139-page FBI
affidavit made public last year when it was placed on the court docket
in Valencia-Trujillo's case.

Authorities tricked Castrillon-Henao into getting onto a plane to
Tampa. After fighting the charges for months, he began to tip
authorities off to cocaine shipments, enabling the Coast Guard and
Navy to seize them as they moved in fishing boats, according to
information in the affidavit. Authorities estimated unprecedented
cooperation has led to 775 arrests and the seizure of 400 tons of cocaine.

According to the FBI affidavit, Castrillon-Henao and Valencia-Trujillo
met in 1989 after Castrillon-Henao had built up a fishing and seafood
export company called Invermap. The two men were introduced by an
acquaintance, the court document states, and they soon began talking
about smuggling cocaine over the eastern Pacific.

Castrillon-Henao subsequently was shot and then kidnapped. Valencia-
Trujillo came to his rescue, paying the kidnappers to release him.
After that, according to the affidavit, Castrillon-Henao began
shipping Valencia-Trujillo's cocaine to repay the debt.