Argentine security forces seized 12,640 kilograms of marijuana in several operations.
The Argentine National Gendarmerie (GNA, in Spanish) reported the seizure of 3,470 kg of marijuana that criminals transported in a truck and hid in sawdust, on April 1, 2021. The operation took place in Corrientes province, where service members intercepted a vehicle with a trailer coming from the city of Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, bound for Buenos Aires province.
During the inspection, upon observing some anomalies in the documentation the driver presented, agents carried out a detailed search using a drug-sniffing dog and a scanner. Authorities found the drug and arrested the driver, an Argentine national.
Misiones under the spotlight
Misiones is the main point of entry for marijuana coming from Paraguay to Argentina, through the Paraná River, and along with Corrientes, is one of the main provinces for trafficking this narcotic, InSight Crime, a research and journalism organization specializing in organized crime in Latin America and the Caribbean, reported on March 15. “Around 60 percent of the cannabis confiscated in Argentina enters the country through Misiones province,” the organization said.
The Argentine Naval Prefecture (PNA, in Spanish) reported that on March 29, anti-drug agents identified a boat on the Paraná River in the town of Eldorado, Misiones, with two crew members, who took advantage of the heavy rain to unload 31 packages containing 1,140 kg of marijuana, before returning to the Paraguayan side.
That night, in Santa Ana, authorities found 217 kg of marijuana in packages hidden among the weeds. In Puerto Libertad, a patrol deployed in the Aguaray Guazú creek, where agents seized 40 packages containing 1,207 kg of marijuana.
In other operations in Misiones, the Argentine National Guard reported seizing 846 kg of marijuana transported in a truck in Colonia Gisela, on March 27. The driver unsuccessfully tried to escape.
The PNA reported that on March 23, authorities seized more than 1,200 kg of marijuana in 75 packages in the Montecarlo municipality.
On March 19, the GNA intercepted a truck with 4,560 kg of marijuana on a rural road in Misiones. The seizure was the result of an investigation of a common offense in the area. The driver, who said he was transporting wood, did not have the required permits, so he was taken into custody for a closer investigation, allowing agents to find the drug.
