A high-ranking Dominican Air Force colonel has filed a formal complaint with the Public Ministry, accusing top officials within the country’s main anti-drug and intelligence agencies of illicitly enriching themselves with drug trafficking money, as reported in El Nacional and other local media.
Colonel Rafael Antonio Morales Herrero, the former director of the Joint Information and Coordination Center of the National Drug Control Agency (DNCD), claims that officials from both the DNCD and the National Intelligence Agency (DNI) are part of a widespread corruption network.
In his complaint, Morales Herrero stated he notified not only the Public Ministry but also President Luis Abinader, who serves as the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The colonel asserts that this high-level conspiracy compromises the integrity of state security and intelligence agencies.
The complaint, filed with Prosecutor Yeni Berenice Reynoso and Persecution Director Wilson Camacho, reportedly includes extensive documentary evidence, confidential reports, and a request for a full investigation.
Morales Herrero alleges that the scheme involves senior officials, including:
• Luis Soto, Director of the DNI
• José M. Cabrera Ulloa, President of the DNCD
• Alberto Montás, an Army officer
The colonel says his denunciation was prompted by President Abinader’s own call for citizens to expose corruption “regardless of rank or last name.”
In one specific case, Morales Herrero detailed the 2016 release of a suspected drug trafficker, Roberto Saviñón (also known as “JC” or “Tulile”), who was arrested by a DNI unit. The colonel claims the DNCD ordered his release in exchange for a US$350,000 bribe and three vehicles. Although Saviñón was re-arrested in 2021, Morales Herrero claims the case was later suppressed.
The complaint goes further, warning of a significant presence of international criminal organizations, including Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel and Jalisco New Generation Cartel, as well as the Albanian Mafia, the Italian ‘Ndrangheta, and the Mocro Mafia. These groups, he alleges, operate with the complicity of military and government officials in areas like Juan Dolio, Boca Chica, and Punta Cana.
Morales Herrero also provided a financial analysis of asset declarations from high-ranking DNCD officials. This analysis, he says, shows significant discrepancies, detailing the unexplainable purchase of apartments, luxury vehicles, and real estate.
The colonel also claims he was a victim of an internal campaign to discredit him and prevent him from becoming the future president of the DNCD. This campaign allegedly involved creating fake audio recordings to falsely link him to drug traffickers and then circulating manipulated versions to the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
Morales Herrero’s complaint also questions the re-hiring of Colonel Pedro Manuel González Peña, an officer previously dismissed for accepting bribes, whose re-entry into the DNCD was allegedly requested by Cabrera Ulloa.
As the accusations mount, the Public Ministry has been asked to launch a full investigation into the matter.
Read more in Spanish:
El Nacional
12 August 2025