The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) is expanding its partnerships with countries in Central and South America and the Caribbean to fight illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing. IUU fishing threatens seafood stocks, undermines science-based fisheries management, puts legitimate producers at a disadvantage, and can encroach on coastal states’ sovereign rights. [ … ]
Transnational Threats
Brazil: Federal Police Dismantles International Narcotrafficking Groups
On January 20, 2021, the Brazilian Federal Police (PF, in Portuguese) arrested five members of a criminal group who were recruiting people to transport cocaine to Lebanon. Three other members of the group remain at large. The arrests occurred as part of Operation Overweight to combat international narcotrafficking. According to [ … ]
Dominican Republic Seizes 1.7 Tons of Cocaine
The Dominican Republic seized 1,763 kilograms of cocaine in four operations from December 1-22, 2020, thanks to the coordination of the country’s National Drug Control Board (DNCD, in Spanish) and the Office of the Attorney General. [caption id="attachment_43776" align="alignleft" width="300"] Dominican officers unload 162 kg of cocaine that were intercepted [ … ]
Colombia Neutralizes ELN Leader
Following sustained fighting in Colombia’s southern Bolívar department, the Colombian Army’s First Division neutralized Bercelio Campuzano, alias Ratón, the main leader of a criminal subgroup of the National Liberation Army (ELN, in Spanish), General Eduardo Zapateiro, commander of the Colombian Army, said on Twitter on January 22. Alias Ratón had [ … ]
Guatemala Captures Suspected Narcotrafficker and Gang Member Wanted by the US
The Guatemalan Police arrested in several operations an alleged Guatemalan narcotrafficker and a dangerous Salvadoran gang member wanted for extradition by the United States, the security institution reported on February 4. Anti-narcotics agents arrested Carlos Cáceres, 33, while he was driving a pickup truck in the municipality of Mixco, east [ … ]
Ecuador, Colombia Dismantle Narcotrafficking Organization
On November 12, 2020, the Ecuadorean National Police reported carrying out a combined operation with the Colombian Military Forces, and with the support of Mexican authorities, against a transnational narcotrafficking organization that operates in Colombia and Ecuador. The operation resulted with the seizure of 2,503 kilograms of drugs, cash, and [ … ]
Orion VI Campaign Deals Hard Blow to Narcotrafficking
On November 25, 2020, the Colombian Navy presented the results of the sixth phase of the Orion International Naval Campaign to Combat Drug Trafficking, a multinational effort consisting of combined and multidimensional operations (maritime, riverine, air, and land) in the Caribbean Sea, the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, as well as [ … ]
Colombian Navy Ends 2020 Dealing Hard Blows to Narcotrafficking
The Colombian Navy ended 2020 continuing its fight against narcotrafficking, and affecting the finances of criminal groups. Among the operations carried out, two that were conducted in mid-December in the Pacific and Caribbean coasts of Colombia stand out, resulting with the seizure of more than 2 tons of cocaine and [ … ]
Brazil: Federal Police Dismantles International Narcotrafficking Organizations
The Brazilian Federal Police (PF, in Portuguese) launched Operation White Sand (Operação Areia Branca), on December 2, 2020, to dismantle an international narcotrafficking and money laundering organization. Some 80 PF officers executed five arrest warrants and 19 search and seizure warrants in many cities in the states of Mato Grosso [ … ]
Panama Seizes 6.5 Tons of Cocaine with Colombian, US Support
The Panamanian Air and Naval Service (SENAN, in Spanish) and Panamanian Ministry of Security seized 6.5 tons of cocaine in five operations carried out with Colombian and U.S. support, November 23-30, 2020. “We have strengthened our operations with the collaboration of Costa Rica, Colombia, and the United States. These countries [ … ]
Brazilian Security Forces Make Headway in Combating Brazil’s Largest Criminal Organization
To evade financial oversight, the First Capital Command (PCC, in Portuguese), Brazil’s main narcotrafficking organization, rents some properties to conceal money and arms. The criminals refer to these properties as safe houses. Most of them are in São Paulo and close to the city of Santos, where a main Brazilian [ … ]
Panama Seizes Nearly 4 Tons of Cocaine
The Panamanian Air and Naval Service (SENAN, in Spanish) seized 3,894 kilograms of cocaine in two operations with U.S. air support, on December 12, 2020. The first seizure took place south of Jicarón Island, in the Pacific Ocean. Authorities detained three men who were traveling in a light boat, with [ … ]