U.S. Army South hosted a pre-deployment training seminar, Operation Alamo Shield Mission Prep, at their headquarters February 23-25, to prepare teams assigned to the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade (1st SFAB) for future training and advising missions in Colombia, Honduras, and Panama. As the Joint Force Land Component Command for [ … ]
Recent News
Peru: Police Seizes Nearly 10 Tons of Chemical Precursors for Cocaine Production
On February 5, the Peruvian National Police (PNP, in Spanish) seized nearly 10,000 kilograms of chemical precursors used for cocaine production, in a clandestine lab in Cusco department. The lab operated in a house in the Pichari district, in the coca-producing valley of the Apurímac, Ene, and Mantaro rivers. [caption [ … ]
US Donates Emergency Response Equipment to Argentine Security Forces
The U.S. government donated to Argentina equipment valued at more than $300,000 to face chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear incidents. U.S. Army Colonel Eddie Ortiz, Defense attaché to Argentina, presented the donation at the Argentine Federal Police Cadet School, in Villa Lugano. Eduardo Villaba, secretary of Security; José Francisco Cafiero, [ … ]
Brazilian Federal Highway Police Makes Record Marijuana Seizure
On February 8, 2021, the Brazilian Federal Highway Police (PRF, in Portuguese) seized nearly 30 tons of marijuana in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul (MS). According to the institution, the seizure was its largest in the country so far. The 29.2 ton cargo was on the trailer of [ … ]
Costa Rica Strengthens Fight Against Organized Crime with US Donation
Costa Rica has new tools to confront transnational organized crime, thanks to a U.S. donation to security forces on February 18, 2021. The aid consists of two Tampa Yacht high-speed interceptors, the repair of two Eduardoño vessels, and funding to build a training and maintenance center at Puerto Caldera Coast [ … ]
Costa Rica Seizes 2.5 Tons of Cocaine
Costa Rican authorities carried out two drug seizures in early February, preventing 2.5 tons of cocaine from departing the country hidden in containers among export products. On February 18, the Costa Rican Drug Control Police (PCD, in Spanish) found 513 kilograms of cocaine hidden among packages of fried food in [ … ]
Paraguay: SENAD Destroys More than 24 Tons of Marijuana
In late January, agents of the Paraguayan National Anti-Drug Secretariat (SENAD, in Spanish) deployed inside the country’s northeastern nature reserves to carry out antinarcotics operations. Among the objectives, SENAD sought to identify and destroy marijuana crops in the forests. On January 28, during an incursion in protected areas, agents found [ … ]
Colombian Military Forces Fight Against Deforestation
The ninth edition of Operation Artemis (Operación Artemisa), a strategy of the Colombian Military Forces to stop deforestation throughout the national territory, took place in the Amazon region February 15-19. The operation had 412 units of the Military Forces and the National Police participating, as well as authorities and government [ … ]
Ecuadorian Authorities Seize Tons of Cocaine in Three Operations
In early February, Ecuadorian security forces carried out three important cocaine seizures in their continuing battle against transnational criminal organizations. On February 6, the Ecuadorian Police reported on Twitter the seizure of more than 1 ton of cocaine on a road near Guayaquil Port. As part of Operation Reinforcement (operativo [ … ]
Paraguayan Police Arrests Brazilian Narcotrafficking Leader
The First Capital Command (PCC, in Portuguese), the largest organized crime and narcotrafficking group in Brazil, suffered another loss. On January 9, 2021, the country’s National Police arrested a drug dealer, considered to be the PCC’s main leader in Paraguay. Giovanni Barbosa da Silva, aka Bonitão or the PCC’s Joker, [ … ]
Colombia Launches New Elite Force Against Narcotrafficking and Rebel Groups
Colombian President Iván Duque launched the Command Against Drug Trafficking and Transnational Threats (CONAT, in Spanish), an elite force of 7,000 Army service members, men and women, to strengthen offensive actions against these scourges, at the Tolemaida Military Fort in Tolima department, the Colombian presidency told the press on February [ … ]
Brazil: Security Forces Seize More than 4 Tons of Marijuana
The Brazilian Federal Highway Police (PRF, in Portuguese) and Federal Police (PF, in Portuguese) seized more than 4 tons of marijuana during two operations. On January 22, 2021, the PRF seized 2,560 kilograms of marijuana in Marechal Cândido Rondon, in the western region of Paraná state. The drug was hidden [ … ]