Colombia: Cocaine Worth $145 Million Seized From Submarine — the Biggest Cocaine Bust in 2 Years by Military

The Armes Forces of Colombia intercepted a million-dollar submarine with four tons of cocaine on Sunday en route to Central America.

The Colombian military said the huge cocaine shipment, estimated to be worth $145 million, was seized as the submarine entered the country's waters, The New York Post reported.

A spokesperson for the Armed Forces told reporters on Tuesday that the submarine was also carrying a drug trafficker hunted by the U.S. for nearly three years.

Jorge P.B., an Ecuadoran national wanted by a U.S. federal court on drug trafficking charges, was among the four men arrested.

In August 2019, the U.S. district court, which has not been identified, has formally requested his extradition with Ecuador's government.

Jorge P.B. and the Colombians were turned over to Colombia's Attorney General's Office. Daily Mail reported that they were charged with the manufacturing, possession, or trafficking of drugs and the use, construction, promotion, and possession of semi-submersibles or submersibles.

Cocaine Shipment Intercepted by Colombia's Military Belonged to Perilla Sandoval

Authorities in Colombia reportedly found at least 4,000 packages filled with cocaine when they opened the hatch on the top of the submarine.

Video footage released by the Armed Forces of Colombia showed the drugs were stored in black bags or wrapped in brown paper and crammed into the vessel. The cocaine's plastic bundles wrapped and placed in 200 large bags were sufficient to be split into 10 million cocaine doses.

A serviceman standing above the vessel and pointing a rifle down into the submarine was also seen in the video. The shipment was reportedly seized 78 miles of the Nariño port city of Tumaco.

The Armed Forces of Colombia said it was the largest narcotics bust the military has uncovered in the last two years. Colombian officials said the diesel-powered submarine was capable of transporting at least 5,000 kilograms of cocaine.

The drugs belonged to a dissident group of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) known as the Alfonso Cano Western Bloc led by Allende Perilla Sandoval, who traffics narcotics out of Tumaco, the military said.

The military also linked Perilla Sandoval to January's seizure of 4,256 kilos of cocaine from two speedboats off the coast of Punta Remedios, El Salvador.

According to the military, at least eight tons of cocaine were seized from a similar vessel in September 2019.

Colombia Announces New Drug-Trafficking Strategy

The latest record bust comes only days after the South American nation and the U.S.'s main ally in the drug war announced the launch of a new strategy to fight drug trafficking.

According to Defense Minister Diego Molano, the strategy is to govern cyberspace to combat criminal groups involved in the cocaine trade and block their financial transactions.

The "Esmeralda" initiative, which was launched in the Caribbean city of Cartagena, would get its support from 36 countries, including the U.S.

In the III International Anti-Drugs Congress early this month, Molano said he hopes to develop new and innovative tactics in the coming years to "fight against the global scourge of drugs."

Molano added that artificial intelligence would also be used to monitor the selling and trafficking of chemical ingredients used in drug making.

Colombia is known to be the world's leading cocaine producer. Illegal armed groups heavily influence the production and trafficking of drugs, including leftist guerrillas and criminal gangs developed from right-wing paramilitaries.

According to the United Nations, the South American country reduced the number of coca plantations, the main ingredient in cocaine, by 7 percent in 2020, but potential output increased by 8 percent to 1,228 tonnes per year.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Jess Smith

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