cover image The Cocaine Wars

The Cocaine Wars

Paul Eddy, Sabogal Hugo. W. W. Norton & Company, $18.95 (399pp) ISBN 978-0-393-02579-8

That the Reagan administration is losing its fight against drugs is the inescapable conclusion that emerges from this explosive report. The authors, who live in Miami and cover drug trafficking for the London Sunday Times, reel off a litany of law enforcement corruption in Dade County. They penetrate the workings of ""the Cartel,"" based in Medellin, Colombia, said to control up to 80% of the cocaine entering the U.S. They also reveal the growing involvement of the Bahamas in the drug trade and payoffs allegedly made to the Bahamian prime minister. Among the protagonists in this seedy, convoluted drama are bald Luis (""Kojak"") Garcia, Miami drug trafficker turned government informant, and Raul Diaz, once a homicide detective, now accused of setting up a CIA-drug smuggler alliance to fund the Nicaraguan contras. The authors avoid sensationalism and marshall their massive documentation impressively. Photos not seen by PW. (May)