American Notes Drugs

When an undercover agent returned from his assignment in Memphis with only 425 lbs. of cocaine instead of the 518 lbs. he was supposed to have seized, federal agents became suspicious. Surveillance revealed that Dan Mitrione Jr., 38, a ten-year FBI veteran, had been involved on the sly in the same drug deals he was assigned to monitor. According to official sources, Mitrione, while working on a project code-named "Operation Airlift," sold the more than 90 lbs. of cocaine skimmed from the Memphis bust for cash and property worth about $850,000, and took bribes from the drug traffickers he was investigating. Said FBI Director William H. Webster: "The corrupting power of drug money is one of the obvious reasons why this No. 1 crime problem must be overcome. This sad case illustrates our relentless determination to police our own ranks."

Mitrione's father, an Agency for International Development official, was killed in 1970 by left-wing Uruguayan guerrillas. Mitrione resigned from the FBI in June 1983. Last week he pleaded guilty to bribery, conspiracy, and possession and distribution of cocaine. Though only a few FBI agents have been indicted on criminal charges since the agency was set up in 1908, recent times have not been easy. In Los Angeles, former Agent Richard W. Miller is awaiting trial for espionage, the first case in FBI history.