Australian authorities move to extradite alleged drugs kingpin from San Francisco
A man accused of being the linchpin in a global cocaine distribution ring appeared in federal court in San Francisco this morning facing extradition to Australia.
U.S. prosecutors say Bao Luu is wanted by authorities in Melbourne, Victoria to answer a charge that he conspired to import 178 kilograms of cocaine into Australia in 2016 and 2017.
Luu has spent most of the last decade living in Vietnam, which does not extradite its own nationals, but he was detained earlier this year after traveling to the Bay Area to attend a funeral.
Luu serves as president of the Vietnam Boxing Federation and his unexpected disappearance left administrators scrambling to find out what had happened to their leader and set in train arrangements to appoint a new top official.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Maureen Bessette told a federal judge today that Luu was believed by Australian Federal Police to be the “supervisor and leader” of a transnational criminal syndicate who, from a base in Vietnam, masterminded drug trafficking into the country.
Luu worked with associates in Australia, Canada, Colombia, Panama and Vietnam to smuggle narcotics, she said. He had contacts at the top of a Colombian drug cartel with whom he was said to be working, plus close relationships with corrupt government officials and dock workers.
Bessette said that the organization had been penetrated by undercover informants of the AFP.
A complaint unsealed this morning disclosed that Australian prosecutors have what they say are “numerous incriminating messages” exchanged between Luu and his accomplices, in which it is claimed he admits his role as head of the crime syndicate and which features images of blocks of cocaine and details of the shipping containers in which they were stored.
Luu used the SkyECC and Cypher Elite encrypted chat services to communicate with accomplices, including the Australian police undercover informant, using the monikers including “ShutTheFuckUp” and “SlaughterNine”.
The first 100 kilograms of drugs that Luu attempted to import into Australia were “hijacked” in Panama by the port contacts in 2016, say prosecutors. A subsequent delivery of 78 kilograms of cocaine arrived and was promptly seized by AFP officers in Melbourne, Victoria, who also found more than $380,000 in cash.
“I do want the court to know that Mr Lu is a citizen of the USA,” defense attorney Jay Rorty said this morning. “He was arrested when he arrived on U.S. shores to attend the funeral of his child.”
Rorty drew the attention of U.S. Magistrate Judge Thomas Hixson to the presence of several relatives who had come to support Luu at San Francisco’s federal courthouse.
Luu, who spoke briefly to state his name, age and to confirm that he understood the charge, was ordered to appear for further proceedings on August 28. That length of time, it transpired, would likely be needed for additional information from the overseas authorities to arrive at the U.S. Department of State and then percolate down to federal prosecutors’ local office in San Francisco.
“I will be gathering information on the issue of bail,” in the meantime, Rorty said.
Judge Hixson remanded Luu to custody.
The maximum sentence in Australia, if convicted, is life imprisonment.
UPDATE: At a status hearing on August 28 Judge Hixson set a briefing schedule ahead of a hearing date of January 29 2026. The court has, in the meantime, been supplied with extradition documents provided by the Australian government.
Luu is now represented by New York City-based attorney Lawrence Schoenbach – a specialist in extradition law.
The case continues.
Please support our work by using this Paypal link
To be notified of new stories enter your email address here or follow us on X