Bashir Noorzai

Bashir Noorzai is a former Afghan drug lord. He was an early supporter of the Taliban movement and later worked as an undercover agent on behalf of the U.S. government. Despite being among America's most wanted drug traffickers, he agreed to come to New York City for a debriefing after being promised by his handlers that he would not be arrested, and was arrested ten days after his arrival. In 2008, he was convicted of smuggling heroin into the U.S. and sentenced to life imprisonment. After the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan, the 2022 US–Afghan prisoner exchange saw him released from prison in exchange for American contractor Mark Frerichs.