SWISS LINK JAILED SALINAS TO DRUGS by David Adams in Miami

SWISS prosecutors investigating the frozen funds of Raul
Salinas de Gortari, the jailed brother of Mexico's former
President, say they have linked him to the smuggling of "40
to 50 tons" of cocaine to the United States.

According to a letter leaked to the Miami Herald , the
Swiss believe Salinas, the brother of Carlos Salinas
Mexican President from 1988 to 1994 "received enormous
amounts of money for his help in connection to drug
trafficking". The letter, from Carla del Ponte, the Swiss
AttorneyGeneral, to her Mexican counterpart, is the first
official indication of a drug connection to Mexico's former
first family. If proven, the allegations would be highly
embarrassing to Citibank, which handled the Salinas
accounts, and would also confirm widespread suspicions of
highlevel drug corruption in Mexico.

They would also provide ammunition to those in the US
Congress pressing the Clinton Administration to punish
Mexico for its slackness in the drug war. President
Clinton is due to make his first official visit to Mexico
next month.

Rumours about Raul Salinas's unexplained wealth have
circulated since late 1995 when officials froze more than $
100 million in his accounts in Swiss, German, French and
American banks.

Copyright (c) 1997, Times Newspapers Limited