[gnosis]

"The parallel construction wouldn't work if the suspects were not actually committing crimes."

See "Three Felonies a Day"[1]

Also, note the following quote from the original article:

"most drug-trafficking defendants plead guilty before trial"

In fact, something like 90% or more of people accused of crimes in the US never get a trial, because they plead guilty. They plead guilty because prosecutors pile on so many charges that the defendants are afraid to risk life in jail if they happen to lose (in a judicial system that's usually stacked against them). Defending a case in Federal court is also incredibly expensive and traumatic. See the Aaron Swartz case for good examples of all of the above.

[1] - http://www.amazon.com/Three-Felonies-Day-Target-Innocent/dp/...