so good night. [ laughter ] in the '90s there is chaos and conflict around the world. and if someone had the ingenuity and drive, they can capitalize on the chaos in these conflict zones by supplying weapons. people are looking to see who is moving the weapons into the war-torn areas and the name viktor bout came up. >> viktor poured gasoline on the conflicts and provided weaponry so the people in these countries could slaughter one another. >> what didn't bother him is to support good guys or bad guys, and if he had the opportunity to support both sides, that meant more money for him.

he was the merchant of death. nobody was able to touch him. >> as a former fbi agent and chairman of the house intelligence committee, i had oversight of all 16 of the nation's intelligence agencies. my name is mike rogers. i had access to classified information gathered by our operatives. people who risked everything for the united states and our families. you don't know their faces or their names. you don't know the real stories from the people who live the fear and the pressure until now. >> a worldwide hunt is on for a russian weapons dealer who u.s. authorities fear is every bit as dangerous as osama bin laden. >> viktor bout is a dangerous figure. they don't care who they do business with and provide

lethal weapons to drug traffickers, terrorists, human traffickers. they are basically the engine behind those groups. he facilitates that death and destruction. and the deaths of many innocents. >> what he did is the worst thing i've ever experienced as a dea agent. the drugs are one thing. drugs can go away but the weapons never go away. they live on. they continue to cause conflict. nothing good comes out of a weapon. >> viktor bout spread death and destruction all around the world with the weapons that he sold. >> viktor bout was part of the soviet military. he went into the service. he picked languages up very quickly. eventually went to the institute where you study languages in russia. >> he was an army translator and

was based in angola and mozambique. he saw what was going on in africa. he saw the regimes that were operating there. he saw the vulnerablity, the fragile governments. >> so after the fall of the soviet empire through his time in the military and other connections, he knew he could access russian aircraft to transport cargo. in 1991, viktor bout starts his import/export business. >> as the cold war ended, all these planes were laying around. and viktor saw an opportunity to move western goods into the former soviet bloc. goods such as tvs, coca-cola, flowers, chicken and from making money from doing this is when he saw that opportunity to build up his fleet of former russian planes, and it went from there. >> he bought the first plane at

25 years of age, and by 30 was a millionaire. >> he became a transport king. his access to planes. his ability with languages caused him to have this immediate rise and expand the network around the world. as he brought merchandise, not arms necessarily into conflict zones he made connections. styles the warlords or those in those countries that were in power needed weapons, and he was very willing to satisfy that need. >> that's africa. africa is where you may start off doing legitimate cargo and the next thing it is someone is approaching you saying you have the ability to move goods from point a to point b. can you move weapons? and in these areas of the former soviet bloc countries, there was just tons and tons of weapons that are sitting over there that are no longer needed, so if you need weapons to go with the planes, we can provide that.

and viktor saw an opportunity to make money. he was already operating there doing legitimate commodities in cargo. but when he saw an opportunity to move weapons into africa, that was an ability to make more money. what didn't bother him was to support the good guys or the bad guys. if he had the opportunity to support both sides, that meant more money for him. viktor bout cared about money. take angola, for example. in 1994, viktor bout sells weapons to both sides of the conflict in angola. in 1995, bout was selling weapons to the taliban in afghanistan. by 2000, viktor bout has contracts with the government of ra wanda to arm and train their military personnel. he chose to do what he was doing and profit prom it and left behind societies that were completely devastated. children in africa whose family networks were destroyed. child soldiers. he facilitated that. estimates of people that were killed in these genocidal episodes in africa and elsewhere, well over a million.

i know from myself and we spent a lot of time in africa. we saw firsthand why viktor is so incredibly dangerous. >> so big governments like the united states and the united kingdom who were observing these atrocities, these movement of weapons from point a to point b, they felt a responsibility to address it. you know, such a big deal for the united states that the national security council got involved and nsa got involved and through their intelligence, the name viktor bout kept coming up, coming up, coming up. and people are like, who is this guy? >> he came under a lot of scrutiny in his entire network was looked at. it was flushed out. and there was a concern he was a mairng major destabilizing figure. >> he shipped everything from tanks and rifles into civil wars and conflicts in numerous countries across africa and asia. u.s., brush and united nations officials believe as payment he took drugs from afghan buyerss

in diamonds from africans. >> there was definitely the will to try to do something. >> but there was nobody that had the ability to go after him in the areas that he was operating. >> the thing about africa is, there is no governments in africa. and the fear of getting in trouble is even less because who is going to cause you problems? people had to try to find a way to stop that. >> in 2000, the united nations security council restricted viktor bout's moves based upon his involvement with supplying weapons to charles taylor in liberia. but viktor bout was an elusive figure that had five to seven aliases, spoke multiple languages. he was able to navigate restrictions. office of foreign control announced the freezing of viktor bout's assets. but going after assets doesn't put somebody in jail. so here, viktor bout was still flying around doing all the things he wanted to do with no

fear of someone coming after him. how do you catch someone like that? and who would catch him? >> dea's special operations division, or s.o.d. focused on foreign transnational criminals. in june of 2007, we arrested manczar al kazar. it gave us the confidence to go forward with viktor bout. >> we had the ability to penetrate them and not wait for them to do more crimes but to get involved and stop it. >> we'll put boots on the ground. find a way to infiltrate viktor bout's organization and demonstrate that nobody is untouchable.

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viktor bout is one of the most notorious weapons traffickers in the world. the weapons that he moved fueled conflict, started wars. people killing each other. child soldiers operating. many people don't realize it because they don't see it and they don't live it. i lived in these areas. i see the conflict that is still going on today. so what he did as a person is like the ultimate evil. >> as investigatoinvestigators, to roll up someone like that and bring them to justice in a transparent u.s. court. for the dea, the viktor bout case kicked off at the end of 2007. lou was our group supervisor. i was one of the senior agents in the group. at the beginning any of investigation you look at the target and try to find a why ay

infiltrate his organization. we wanted to use the farc scenario. propose a $15 million to $20 million deal with the farc. the farc was a designated foreign terrorist organization based in colombia promoting marxit ideology and the farc has a real need for weapons and the farc had kidnapped americans, killed americans, had anti-american sentiment. >> the u.s. government was supporting the colombian government to combat the farc. and the farc had regressed from a marxist regime to one of the significant drug trafficking organizations operating globally. so the scenario that we put together was that the farc needed a number of weapons and specifically surface to air missiles to counter the u.s. helicopters flying in south america. >> the farc was looking for weapons. the proceeds are in europe. we need to meet and discuss

this. and these farc members he's going to meet with are actually undercover operatives. sometimes you cap use the dea agent. sometimes you have to use a source. >> my source carlos was the right person for this case. he had the ability to talk the lingo of weapons. he had the ability to talk about money laundering. he was able to pose as a farc person. not as a farc guerrilla. farc guerrillas operate in the jungle, shoot people and are on the front lines but they need people to move money, sell drugs and to travel and carlos had that ability to pose himself as a farc supporter. >> if we could get carlos in front of viktor bout, we knew he'd be able to deliver. carlos was the king of sting. >> it's not a game. it's not a movie. it's real life. you can get killed. i am part of the dea, but i am

no dea agent. i am the source. >> the history of carlos is that he grew up in central america. he got involved with the military and as what happens in many of these countries is the military, law enforcement, politicians somehow get caught up in corruption. and carlos found himself in that situation. he was helping move money on behalf of the cartels. >> so on his own will, he went to dea in the central american country and said, this is what i'm doing. and i want to make amends. >> it's help philadelphia thful that background and understand the criminal networks and lived it. if you don't put the right source in front of a legitimate, knowledgeable bad guy, the target will sniff it out in a second. >> do you know people who have been killed? >> yes, i know. it's very easy to get killed on

this type of job. you don't know if the other person sees that you are using a microphone. anything can get wrong. these people are for real, and they can kill you. >> for the bout investigation, the big challenge was, how do we get close to him? developing some sources, we were able to identify andrew smolian, an old colleague of viktor's. they had worked together from time to time and viktor bout clearly trusted him. >> we had to devise a plan to get to smulian. we did our research, and we were able to develop a person of interest who we could approach as a potential source, a cooperator. and that person was a gentlemen by the name of mike snow. mike snow was a british pilot who had spent much of his time br operating in africa. had never been a criminal. had been a member of the british

special forces. but mike snow knew smulian very well. and mike agreed to cooperate with us. he saw the atrocities that took place in africa. he flew in africa. spent a lot of time there. and felt that there was a need for him to get involved and stop it. the approach that we were going to take was mike was going to reach out to andrew smulian and say, hey, are you still in contact with viktor? and if so, i have people that viktor would be very much interested in meeting. mike is the type of guy to say, oh, i'll find out right now and gets on the phone and spoke to smulian and he said, yes, boris is still out there. >> who is boris? >> boris is viktor bout. that was his nickname. andrew agreed to meet. he flew into curacao. a critical meeting. this will be the first time smulian met carlos. if he didn't believe carlos was

a farc member, this wasn't going anywhere. >> mike snow would introduce carlos to smulian and propose a weapons deal that would be worth millions of dollars. hoping he'd take it directly to viktor bout. >> someone could say something that sounds a little bit off. smulian could become suspicious. at every stage, the whole thing could fall apart. we're proving the new keurig k-duo brewer makes any occasion the perfect coffee occasion. breakfast in bed! just add ground coffee for a carafe, or pop in a pod for a freshly brewed cup. exactly how i like my coffee. you've got your carafe. i've got my light roast. we're brewing the love.

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january of 2008, our plan was to go to curacao and have a meet with andrew smulian. the first meeting. carlos would be there representing the farc as the farc role player. his farc associate, another operative, and mike snow. mike snow was the dea source that knew andrew smulian and vouched for carlos and the other farc role player. dea believed -- i believed, we all believed viktor bout would do arms business with anyone. an insurgent group, terrorist group who need weapons, he has no qualms about providing those weapons. that's why viktor is so incredibly dangerous. >> my goal was convince smulian that we are for real. that we are from the farc, that

way he can go and tell viktor bout about us. >> andrew smulian was a target. smulian has no idea the dea is nearby that carlos is working with us. >> it was a critical meeting for us because this is going to be the first time smulian met carlos and if smulian didn't buy it, if he didn't believe that carlos was actually a farc member, this wasn't going anywhere. >> the meeting took place in one of the hotels on curacao. we went to a restaurant that is outside on the beach. so it was the perfect place to talk about business. >> when smulian met with carlos he looked at him and said you don't look like a farc guy. >> what happened is that we are on the middle of the jungle. and we get a little bit -- not me.

the people that i work. >> that's when carlos relaid back, no, i don't look like a farc but i'm a guy that supports the farc. i go off and i collect the money. i help get the weapons and put the orders in. >> andrew smulian was testing the waters. at any moment, the whole thing could fall apart. someone could say something that sounds a little bit off. smulian could become suspicious. viktor definitely had coached smulian to be very careful. so there was a lot riding on it. and we have several meetings down in curacao between andrurks mike snow and our two sources, carlos and el commandante. he played the role of a farc commander, a military guy operating in the jungles fighting the colombian government. he is another dea source. former drug trafficker. knows an awful lot about the farc. knows an awful lot about weapons and drug trafficking and is a very, very believable jungle leader. and he talked about what happens were needed. type of ammunition.

and the list went on. it was a deal that would definitely pique viktor's special. we knew that a deal of this size would not take place unless they looked each other in the eye, they shook hands and knew who they were dealing with. >> we had to push it that smulian go to russia and actually meet with bout to make it happen. and smulian bought the farc role players as members of the farc. smulian was very interested in the deal. so after curacao, the plan was for smulian to go to moscow. we believed to meet with vehiik bout and discuss this proposed deal. what we agreed to do is meet smulian in copenhagen to see what he hoped viktor bout thought about the deal. once we got to copenhagen, carlos was in contact with smulian. smulian was returning from russia. there was a meeting that was set up. >> i met him in copenhagen. and he told me that the person who is going to bring the

weapons to us, that he wanted to know if we're for real. >> viktor presented pictures to smulian and said which one of these farc commanders did you meet with? >> tell me to identify the people you saw. i told him, i can't. >> of course, there was no pictures in there. smulian convinced him that we was from the farc and that we're going to need weapons so smulian was the one who really vouched for me. he trust me completely. >> the sources had done their job and convinced them enough that smulian felt comfortable enough to do that. carlos had the unassuming personality where people felt comfortable with him. when we needed to get the difficult statements during recordings with the bad guys, he would find a way to address it and get it across the finish line. after the meeting, carlos said,

hey, he pulled me aside and we were walking back from a meal and said who he went to see. >> why did he do that? >> i don't know. he was trying to impress me. >> but it also, in his mind, showed that he had a righteous arms trafficker that could supply to them. and he would get some percentage of whatever the deal was going to be. once smulian said viktor bout, then we knew that we were in. but that's only part of it. we could have all the meetings with andrew smulian. but if we don't have a sit-down with viktor bout, we'll not get what we need. all their efforts from that moment on were to get viktor to come in and have a meeting with carlos and commandante. that's where we encountered some curveballs.

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the investigation against viktor bout. it has to be one of the most significant ones. here's a guy selling weapons to conflict areas. and knowing exactly what his weapons are being used for. it wasn't for peacekeeping purposes. it was for death and destruction.

so we felt it was really important that once we started taking ground, we needed to get it done as quickly as we could. in copenhagen, after smulian had relaid that, yes, it was viktor bout, that he was interested in pursuing the sale with smulian and the farc, we devised a meeting location because for dea to get the investigation done, we needed to have a sit-down meeting with viktor bout. so we chose romania for that meeting. a bunch of benefits. if we made an arrest in romania, they have a solid extradition treating and very good judicial capabilities to monitor phones. so that was our first thing. to meet with the romanian counterparts. once we did that, we set the time. smulian came in to romania. carlos was in romania. the other farc role player commandante was in romania. all their efforts from that moment on were to get viktor to come in. and that's where we encountered

some curveballs in getting viktor to romania. >> when we are in romania waiting for viktor, we talked to him on the phone. and we told him that he need the weapons. we got the money. and we need to meet face to face with him to finalize the business. >> one of the things we did say to viktor was that we had money in romania. it was millions of dollars in cash. and that cash was waiting for him in romania. that made the deal sweeter because viktor wouldn't want money in a bank going to him to pay for this. he's already been sanctioned. he wanted the cash. so that was the enticing carrot to get to romania. and one thing you can count on from people like viktor bout is that it's all about money. >> he said that he's going to try to get romania and he's trying to get the visa. >> viktor was trying to get a visa. he was told he can get it in a couple days. this progressed for another day and viktor said it might just be easier if you go across the

border. we couldn't do that. we had to make an excuse and another excuse because we just don't have the ability to go across a border. these things have to be coordinated. there was a lot of discussion with bout if you can't meet in romania. he kept coming up with places bad for us. cube anicaragua, vietnam. >> every time he came up with something to make it easy, we came back and said, well, it's not that easy for us. and mostly bad guys will change the way that they do things to get it across the finish line. we did not have that ability because we can only work in certain countries that will support our efforts. >> i was just thinking, i have to convince him to come and finish the deal. >> and what we heard next was the most shocking part. someone told viktor it's not safe for you to go to romania. that was like the kill switch. that was like, this is going down the tubes immediately and it's going down fast. and we're going to lose this. >> our big concern was like, is

he playing us? because he couldn't get the visa? because people were telling him that it's not safe for him to go to romania. we needed to regroup. >> the team and i discussed what our next move would be, and we collectively decided that while risky, the right thing to do and the most realistic thing to do was to leave romania and walk away. it would plant a seat in bout's mind that, well, maybe they'll find another arms trafficker. this would put more pressure on viktor to close the deal. and before the source left, carlos had a conversation with viktor on the phone. > carlos made it clear. i have to leave. let's be back in touch. the risk when we left was that he was going to walk away and the case would just die. it was a calculated risk.

>> carlos provided an email to smulian to give to viktor and said to contact him on that when viktor was ready. it was a risk to leave romania. we could have stayed there longer but it just wouldn't look right. cops would wait until whenever. you'd wait. but at some point, if we're real, we've got to get out of there. when we left romania, we were completely frustrated with ourselves. the sources were frustrated. we were trying our best to get it across the finish line. we were unsure about what the next step was to make this investigation successful. >> i was worried we would never hear from viktor again. . >> when we left romania and went back to the united states, forget how long it was. maybe a week or so. an email came in and said this

is a friend of andrew. and the email address was registered to viktor bout. we were all like, this is not possible. if a guy as notorious as viktor bout and most wanted, why would he register an email address under his name. >> it sounds stupid. >> it certainly does. >> after the email came in, there was some communication between carlos and viktor to try to figure out where a meeting could take place. and we knew russians didn't need a visa to get into thailand. we had a great office in thailand. great counterparts. and there was an extradition treaty there. our decision was to have carlos tell viktor, i'm going to be in thailand early in march. can you meet me there? >> and when carlos got the word back that he agreed, it was like elation for all of us. we were just like, maybe we can get this across the finish line. >> so we traveled over to

thailand, briefed up the thais and waited to see if viktor would show up. >> he wee still thought at any stage we he could get spooked. might not duet in. it's all talk. he's not going to come in. you don't want it to fall apart when you've come this close. rels are so confusing. america's most reliable network. the nation's largest and most reliable network. the best network is even better? best, fastest, best. enough. sprint's doing things differently. they're offering a new 100% total satisfaction guarantee. try it out and decide for yourself. now you can switch to sprint and get both an unlimited plan and the samsung galaxy s10 plus included for just $35 a month. for people with hearing loss, visit sprintrelay.com.

i've slain your dreaded dragon. for saving the kingdom what doth thou desire? my lord? hey good knight. where are you going? ♪ ♪ climbing up on solsbury hill ♪ grab your things, salutations. coffee that is a cup above is always worth the quest. nespresso. tis all i desire. did thou bring enough for the whole kingdom? george: nespresso, what else? we're honored to have you on campus for taflac!icial visit. coach saban, how is aflac's program different from health insurance? well aflac gives you money directly, for things health insurance doesn't cover. aflac! we put together a little highlight reel for you.

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viktor agreed to meet in bangkok. we set the meeting for march 6th, 2008. we hoped that viktor would show up. we still thought at any stage he could get spooked. he might not get in. it's all talk. he's not going to come. that creates some anxiety and you don't want it to fall apart when you've come this close. but we had people at the airport doing surveillance and then got word he landed and we got off the plane and we knew at that point that we were very close. >> once viktor arrived in thailand, he was with another individual. and we learned that that individual was his bodyguard. and both those individuals were surveilled from the time they exited the plane from the time they arrived at the hotel. >> he told me that viktor arrived. get ready.

there was adrenaline inside me. i have to do everything right to get him in jail. >> our agents were to meet with carlos. he was in the mezzanine area and viktor came up and sat down with carlos and andrew and with his bodyguard. and proceeded to do introductions. and i think one of the first things that came out from viktor to carlos was i'm sorry about your loss. the farc had just lost one of their senior commanders in colombia. and viktor had done his research on this. and was testing the source. and carlos was sharp enough to say, yes, thank you very much. and he mentioned the commander's name during that conversation. which probably put viktor at ease. >> we were sitting on the bar.

we were drinking tea. we decided there was a good place to have this type of conversation. >> viktor said let's go up to the 27th floor. there's a business center up there and they go up to have the meeting there. carlos' safety and the safety of the other sources is one of our number one concerns. viktor is one of the most ruthless arms traffickers in the world. weapons could be smuggled in through russian criminal networks in thailand which are rampant. we had no idea if viktor was bringing a gun to that meeting. there are so many unknowns. so they went up to the conference room and what was going to take place next was the commandante, the other source, was going to come into the meeting and talk about what was needed on the ground with the fark. it would draw ought the discussion of what particular weapons were needed, what the conflict was about and what viktor could do to support the needs of the farc. to arrest bout we had to establish probable cause there was a conspiracy, that he knew

who the farc was, knew he was entering into a weapons deal with them. he knew these weapons were going to be used to kill americans and kill officers and other officials in the u.s. government. that he knew he was going to be acquiring and using surface to air missiles and those were the guidelines of what we had to establish. so commandante explained he was fighting against the americans. the americans were killing his people. they were helping the colombian government and bout said this is my fight, too. they are my enemy also. >> the commandante really brought it home. they talked about how they needed these surface to air missiles to shoot down the american apache helicopters. they needed to kill these americans. >> they explained that they needed sniper rifles with sights so that the farc could, as they described, blow the heads off the american pilots.

>> he knew that we were fighting against the united states. he don't care if we're going to kill americans. he was happy that we're going to use his weapons to kill the americans. that was when we believed that we got all the evidence that we need against him. >> as the meeting was taking place on the 27th floor, when the other agents and i were waiting with the thai counterparts in this hotel room, we were waiting for a predetermined phone call from carlos that the negotiations were wrapping up. all the points had been hit, and it was now time for the thai counterparts to go up and make the arrest. >> after he agreed, i made the call to tell that we finished the deal. >> and the agent said, wait, we need more time.

we need more time. what room are you in. and that information never got relaid. we knew they were on the 27th floor but just didn't know which room. >> and i don't know which room it was. i was in the conference room. there was a moment of panic. >> so myself, lou and all the other thai arresting officers made our way up in the elevatar. i'm sitting in the back of this group as they're walking down this business center with all these doors. and they all walk by this one door that was shut. and i remember, i opened up the door. i stuck my head in and i could see viktor bout right there. and i immediately shut the door and i'm like, guys, over here. over here. they're here. and they all had to turn around and that's when they made the entry into the room. >> hands up. police. you are under arrest. everybody, hands up. >> hands up. >> the lead thai cops had their guns drawn. and told viktor and andrew and everyone neelse in english to g

their hands up. viktor's hands were in a bag. hen the head thai commander was saying, let me see your hands, and viktor was very hesitant about taking his hands out of his briefcase. and i really thought at one point that thai officer was going to just light him up. the thai cops were absolutely dialed in on him and his hands. and gave the commands again. >> hands up. hands up. >> and then everyone complied. everybody was put up against the wall and handcuffed, and then the arrests were made. >> after he got arrested, he was brought to the thai police station. we sat down with him and explained to him about who the people that he had been meet with and they're all sources of the dea. and his first response was, i guess you hold all the cards. he knew that he'd been beat. and when the thais arrest

somebody, they never just do a very quiet arrest. they put the bad guys in front of tv cameras, and that's exactly what happened the next day. it was on television. there were hundreds of people there. it was a circus atmosphere. he was laid out in front of everyone, in front of all the media. they announced the charges. >> and then we began the extradition process. but viktor knows an awful lot. so there was that concern that someone would not want him to cooperate and could have him killed before we could get him back to the united states to face justice. [ song: johnny cash, "these are my people." ] ♪ these are my people ♪ ♪ these are the ones ♪ ♪ who will reach for the stars ♪ ♪ these are my people ♪ by the light of the earth, ♪ ♪ you can tell they are ours ♪

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today's arrests mark the cull midgetmy nation of our investigation that spanned the globe. it marks end of the reign of arms traffickers. >> through the whole investigation, you're worried that this is not going to get across the finish line. that worry even existed after victor got arrested because he's still pending extradition. you can say i arrested him, but that doesn't get you across the

finish line. a successful investigation doesn't take place until he sits in a courtroom and he's successfully prosecuted. we knew it would take some time, but there ended up being an awful lot of meddling, pressure from russia, behind the scenes attempt at corruption. literally there were times when the agents would call and say are we going to lose this? because it was very touch and go. >> it's a big deal. we're not talking about a cartel guy. we're talking about victor bout. he's selling weapons knowing they are going to be used to kill each other. knowing they will never go away. >> he was an accessory to violence on a scale that's beyond comprehension. >> they didn't want them to use weapons against them. or country its like kenya, those weapons are still there causing more and more conflict.

>> after more than two years of extradition proceedings a court ordered bout extradited to the united states. >> after the extradition had been approved, we flew in to fly him out. he was transferred from the prison. there were certainly big security risk because victor knows an awful lot. there was that concern that someone would not want him to cooperate and potentially could have him kill ed. >> the russian government concerned about his intimate knowledge of military and intelligence operations fought for his return to russia. >> when he was transferred from the prison, the counterparts sent a decoy team and another team was sent with victor to the plane, the formal transfer took place and got him on the plane and got him separaituated and ww

back. >> we had him on the plane and he acted like a complete gentleman. he was very articulate. they realized once you're wheels up and heading back to the united states, they can't bribe their way out. they are in for the long haul now. >> when we got off the plane and got him into an armored vehicle and caravanned down to manhattan correctional facility, processed him and turned him over to the bureau of prisons and left him and had a drink. >> i was happy we got him. we did everything that we planned to do. we went around the world chasing

viktor bout. we. >> october 12th, 2011. lasted approximately three weeks. they decided to cooperate. pled guilty and testified in open court against bout. he was sentenced to five years in prison. >> there was trial. i testified against bout. there was something nice to see him in court. >> bout has long denied any connection to arms dealings saying he was simply in the air transport business. whatever the case, this businessman once said to be untouchable now waits his fate in federal court. >> a jury came back. i believe it was november 27bd, 2011 after a few hours of deliberating and announced the unanimous verdict of guilty on all counts. >> conspiracy to kill americans, conspiracy to kill officers and

other united states officials, conspiracy to acquire and use surface to air missiles and conspiracy to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization. >> when he got sentenced and turned around and pointed a at myself and the other agent and said your time will come, that shook me up. because in all my time of law enforcement and all my time as arresting individuals, i have never actually felt that way before. and we're not talking about some little fish. we're talking about viktor bout. >> he was sentenced april 2012 to 25 years. >> putting bout behind bars for 25 years, i feel good about it. i live in africa. i see day in and day out how victor bout had done so much

damage. is and that damage continues today. i was in moos a place where thes weapons probably provide bid bout. >> it's a lot better than just talking about it. at least we did something with it. >> i constantly remind myself and say, you know what, i did something to try to counter that. knowing that people were trying to stop this individual for years and didn't have the ability, yet a small group of individuals all banded together to take down somebody as notorious as viktor bout. i'm proud of what the team did. >> this conviction sends a message to all the transnational criminals throughout the world.

the other transnational criminals that we have investigated and successfully prosecuted that nobody is untouchable preponderance. welcome to our viewers here in the the united states and around the world. next here on cnn newsroom, the protests in hong kong have never been more violent. one protesters has been shot by police and we learned demonstrators have set a man on fire. we'll take you live to the streets. bolivia's leader is out, but now the question is who is coming in. we'll have the latest on that country's political crisis. >> also we are just days away from what could be the most