The U.S. government assigned $7 million to Ecuador on September 3, 2020 to improve the infrastructure of the justice and security department, to strengthen the fight against narcotrafficking and transnational organized crime. The Ecuadorean National Police has been keeping up the fight against narcotrafficking, and has seized more than 9.6 [ … ]
Transnational Threats
Operation Horus Seizes More Than 33 Tons of Marijuana
Brazilian Military Police from the Border Operations Department (DOF, in Portuguese), with support from the Ministry of Justice and Public Security’s Secretariat of Integrated Operations (Seopi/MJSP, in Portuguese), carried out Operation Horus in Mato Grosso do Sul state on August 26, resulting in the largest drug seizure in Brazil’s history. [ … ]
USAID to Allocate $1.17 Million to Support Venezuelans
On August 27, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced that it will grant $1.17 million to five institutions that will directly benefit Venezuelans in Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Venezuela. The money is part of a partnership between USAID and the Inter-American Development Bank that seeks to identify, [ … ]
Argentine Naval Prefecture Seizes More than 8 Tons of Marijuana
The Argentine Naval Prefecture (PNA, in Spanish) seized more than 8 tons of marijuana in Corrientes and Entre Ríos provinces and different areas of Misiones province, during several operations carried out on the Argentine-Paraguayan border in late July and early August. Authorities carried out the main drug seizure in early [ … ]
Honduras Seizes 489 Kg of Cocaine in Light Aircraft Coming from Venezuela
Honduran authorities dealt another blow to narcotrafficking on August 23 by detaining an aircraft carrying 489 kilograms of cocaine. “The twin-engine aircraft coming from Venezuela, and with an alleged Mexican registration, was intercepted after crashing in a clandestine landing area in the southwestern part of Aguas municipality, Gracias a Dios [ … ]
SOUTHCOM Leaders Discuss Dealing with Hemispheric Threats
U.S. Navy Admiral Craig S. Faller, commander of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), and Ambassador Jean Manes, SOUTHCOM civilian deputy to the commander, joined an Americas Society/Council of the Americas roundtable conversation on October 5. “The main mission of SOUTHCOM is to defend the United States. That's primarily accomplished through working [ … ]
Iranian Who Led Human Smuggling Operation Arrested in Brazil
Reza Sahami, an Iranian man wanted for human smuggling and forgery, was arrested in the Brazilian state of Acre, on September 5, as a result of Operation Chacal. According to the Brazilian Federal Police (PF, in Portuguese), Sahami was the leader of an organization that for more than 10 years [ … ]
Chile Fighting Increase in Synthetic Drug Trafficking
The Chilean police is fighting synthetic drug trafficking in its country. According to the Narcotrafficking Observatory of Chile 2020 Report, issued by the Chilean Office of the Attorney General, the civil police seized 2,304 doses of synthetic drugs in 2010, while more than 1.6 million doses were seized in 2019. [ … ]
US Sanctions Iran, Venezuela’s Maduro amid Increased Cooperation
The United States on September 21 slapped new sanctions against the Iranian Ministry of Defense and Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro for his role in supporting the Tehran regime’s weapons program. “Our actions today are a warning that should be heard worldwide: No matter who you are, if you violate the U.N. [ … ]
Interim President Guaidó Pays Bonus to Health Workers in Venezuela
Funds confiscated from the Nicolás Maduro regime in the United States that belong to the Venezuelan people are being used to pay a bonus to health workers in Venezuela, in a program designed by the team of Interim President Juan Guaidó. According to National Assembly (AN, in Spanish) lawmaker Manuela [ … ]
Paraguay: Agents Seize More than 1,000 Kg of Marijuana
On August 23, special agents of the Paraguayan National Anti-Drug Secretariat (SENAD, in Spanish) intercepted a truck carrying 1,074 kilograms of marijuana hidden in wooden furniture. [caption id="attachment_39995" align="alignright" width="336"] During Operation Karumbe, narcotics agents captured four people who were carrying almost 123 kg of cocaine hidden inside a truck’s [ … ]
US Says Narcotrafficking from Venezuela Has Increased in Recent Months
Since April 2020, U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) has seen an increase in narcotrafficking through and from Venezuela toward Central America and Europe, two U.S. government officials said on August 28. “Venezuela has become a criminal paradise […] for narcoterrorists and drug traffickers,” U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Andrew Tiongson, SOUTHCOM [ … ]