FBI: Roslyn Heights man part of opium ring

A Long Island man was arrested and accused Thursday of participating in an international smuggling ring that moved opium from Iran and Afghanistan into the United States by hiding it in Persian rugs.

Mehrdad Samoukian, 52, of Roslyn Heights, and five others were charged by Manhattan federal prosecutors with conspiracy to distribute opium in a probe the FBI dubbed "Operation Flying Carpets." He faces up to 20 years in prison.

The charges said the drugs originated with "nomads" on the Afghan-Iran border, were driven by an Iranian rug merchant to Hamburg, Germany, and then shipped, hidden inside the carpets, to the United States by air cargo.

An official said that the ring was believed to be importing an estimated 1 kilo of opium per month into the United States and marketing it mostly in the Iranian community.

Three men from Queens and New Jersey were indicted in the case in January, and men from Virginia and Maryland were picked up Thursday.

Samoukian was detained after an appearance in federal court in Manhattan. He did not enter a plea, and his lawyer could not be reached for comment afterward.

"Opium is not a bygone relic of the Victorian era," said FBI New York director Janice Fedarcyk. "It remains a dangerous and highly addictive drug."