Terrorist arms dealer indicted

NEW YORK, May 6 (UPI) -- A U.S. indictment was unsealed against an international arms dealer suspected of trying to sell weapons to terrorist organizations for use against Americans.

The indictment is for Viktor Bout, also called the Merchant of Death, who was indicted Tuesday in New York for allegedly conspiring to sell millions of dollars worth of weapons to the Colombia-based terrorist organization Fuerzas Armadas Revolutionaries de Colombia.

Bout has been in custody in Thailand since March 6. The United States, by unsealing the indictment, is pushing for Bout's extradition.

Bout allegedly used a fleet of cargo airplanes to transport the weapons and military equipment around the world, including to Liberia, which drew the attention of the U.S. Treasury Department in 2004 that led to the freezing of Bout's assets within U.S. jurisdiction.

Officials say between November 2007 and March 2008, Bout agreed to sell the millions of dollars of weapons to undercover sources working with the U.S. Justice Department for delivery to the FARC, with "the specific understanding that the weapons were to be used to attack United States helicopters in Colombia," the release said.

Bout has been charged with four separate terrorism offenses and could face life imprisonment if convicted.

"Viktor Bout no doubt faces some of the most extraordinarily serious conspiracy charges possible for his crimes against Americans," Drug Enforcement Agency Acting Administrator Michele Loenhart said in a statement. "With the unsealing of this indictment, we are one step closer to ensuring Bout has delivered his last load of high-powered weaponry and armed his final terrorist."