“Fugitive” visits newspaper, denies heading drug trafficking ring

Santo Domingo.- The businessman and supposed “fugitive” Winston Risik yesterday rebuffed accusations that he’s the leader of a powerful drug trafficking ring which allegedly operates in the east region.

In a visit to newspaper El Dia, Risik said his “problem” began nearly 20 years ago when he was arrested with some alleged drug traffickers during a transaction at a restaurant he had in the United States, but affirms had nothing to do with it.

He said one of the participants had affirmed hearing everything, for which the US authorities charged him with conspiracy, convicted and sentenced to eight years in prison, but served a bit more than three doing community work, but then fled to Dominican Republic.

When he arrived in the country, he says, in 1995, he was arrested on the same charges as those in the U.S., and served five years in prison while awaiting his extradition, but the Supreme Court didn’t authorize it.

Risik and Pascual Cabrera

He said while in prison he met Pascual Cabrera, also accused of heading a drug trafficking ring, and the source of the confrontation with Risik. He said they became good friends in prison.

He said once they left prison they had an argument over fighting roosters, which ended their friendship and says that’s the reason behind Cabrera’s attempts to kill him on at least two occasions.

He said he has been the victim, but the authorities want him to become the perpetrator, and that he has nothing to do with the ring of hired killers dismantled by Police and to which has been linked to.

He only works

Risik insists on his innocence and that all has done is work hard and warned that “they won’t make him great as they did with Antonio del Rosario Puente (Toño Leña) and the late Rolando Florián Féliz.

As to del Rosario, Risik said he met him in prison and says doesn’t have the stature in the drug trafficking world which the authorities sought, since there are others much more powerful.

Not wanted

He denied that the police is looking for him, noting that he has just one residence, and regularly visits the Santo Domingo Cockfighting Arena.

Accompanied by his two lawyers, Pedro Duarte and Freddy Castillo, Risik Rodríguez criticized that the two recent police chiefs involved it in the narco without having a record.