Bogota —
Colombian authorities reported a seizure of 5.5 tonnes of cocaine on Friday, the largest so far this year in the Caribbean Sea, as the government struggles to show results for more crackdowns within the framework of its new anti-drug policy. is interested.
The seizures were made this week in three operations against “go fast” type boats, which are commonly used by drug traffickers trying to move drugs to the north of the continent. The interventions were supported by the authorities of Panama and the United States, the Colombian Navy said in a statement.
Vice Admiral Hernando Matos Dagger, Commander of the Caribbean Naval Force, indicated that this is the biggest seizure of 2023 in the Caribbean Sea, which will affect the finances of illegal organizations by $184 million, preventing them from accessing the market. 13 million doses of cocaine.
The first operation was carried out 120 nautical miles northwest of the Bay of Morosquillo, located between the departments of Sucre and Córdoba, where a boat manned by four Colombians and one Panamanian was detected, which managed to escape and was captured at Fewer than 77 sacks were thrown. Inside the sea they had packages of 1,915 kg of cocaine hydrochloride.
In the second operation, they identified a “Go Fast” type vessel 97 nautical miles northwest of the Gulf of Morosquillo, carrying 2,198 kg of cocaine and operated by four Colombians, allegedly were seeking to move the narcotics to a port in Honduras.
In the previous operation, 1,367 kg of cocaine was seized, which was dumped from a boat by the crew before fleeing the spot to avoid capture.
Referring to the operation, Colombian President Gustavo Petro said on Twitter: “This is the power of sanctions going to the heart of mafia big businessmen.”
The day before, Petro asked the armed forces to increase from 1.6 tonnes of cocaine seized per day across the country – not just in the Caribbean Sea – to two tonnes per day over the next six months. According to official figures, 671 tonnes of cocaine were to be seized across the country in 2022.
The increase in seizures is part of a new anti-narcotics strategy being implemented by Petro, which requires military and intelligence efforts to focus on major drug traffickers and their influence on finances, including money laundering, thus The “oppression” of small producers of coca can be reduced. Leaves, raw material for cocaine.
Colombia is set to reach a historic high of 204,000 hectares in 2021, according to the latest available report from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
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