Feds: Russian 'Merchant of Death' can't avoid justice

A Russian labeled the "Merchant of Death" by those who claim he fueled some of the world's deadly Third World conflicts over the last decade with powerful weapons is in U.S. custody where he belongs, a prosecutor said Wednesday.

"The so-called Merchant of Death is now a federal inmate," U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said of Viktor Bout, who was flown from Thailand to a suburban New York airport Tuesday. "No one is beyond the reach of the law."

Bout, 43, a former Soviet military officer and air cargo executive, faces charges he supported terrorists trying to overthrow the government of Colombia and shared their hatred for Americans.

"No one should ever think he can plot to kill Americans with impunity," Bharara said.

Bout, who wore a brown shirt and black sweatpants, pleaded not guilty through his lawyer, Sabrina Shroff, and spoke politely as he answered the judge's questions.

At one point, Bout was asked if a fianancial affiddavit he signed was accurate. He replied, "Yes, I swear," through an intrepreter, standing and raising his hand as if swearing to tell the truth.

The judge ordered him detained without bail while awaiting his next court appearance, which was set for Jan. 10.

Prosecutors also announced the unsealing of a July 2008 guilty plea by Andrew Smulian, another defendant in the case. Bharara said Smulian admitted that he conspired with Bout to carry out a weapons deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. He is cooperating with the U.S. government.

U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said Tuesday that Bout was considered "one of the world's most prolific arms traffickers."

"Viktor Bout has been indicted in the United States, but his alleged arms trafficking activity and support of armed conflicts in Africa has been a cause of concern around the world," Holder said in a statement. "His extradition is a victory for the rule of law worldwide."

For several months, U.S. and Russian officials had fought for control of Bout, flexing muscles in a manner that seemed to threaten cooperation on arms control, nuclear weapons curbs and the war in Afghanistan.

In one high-profile meeting in Hanoi last month, a former U.S. official said, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton that Russia's cooperation on anti-narcotics efforts in Afghanistan might be curtailed unless Bout was freed.

Lavrov said in remarks broadcast on Russian television Tuesday that the Thai government's decision was "an example of glaring injustice."