The Guatemalan Army seized more than 3 tons of cocaine in several counter-drug operations conducted April 19-21. Two of the seizures originated in the Maracaibo region of Venezuela, where small aircraft departed on suspicious flights over the Caribbean Sea that ended up violating Guatemalan airspace. An April 21 counter-drug operation [ … ]
Transnational Threats
Brazilian Federal Police Seizes 650 Kilograms of Cocaine in Pernambuco
On April 22, the Brazilian Federal Police (PF, in Portuguese), with the support of Pernambuco’s Military Police Battalion, seized 650 kilograms of cocaine concealed in the cargo compartment of an airplane. The drug was divided into several packages and bags. The operation resulted in the seizure of the aircraft, eight [ … ]
Withdrawal from Anti-drug Agreements Benefits Cartels in Venezuela
On February 25, in a combined operation, the Colombian Navy and Aruban security forces seized more than 5 tons of cocaine hidden inside a compartment of the cargo ship Aressa. The vessel that sailed under a Cameroonian flag had departed from Guaranao Port, in the Venezuelan state of Falcón, and [ … ]
Venezuela, Safe Haven for Mexican Narcotraffickers
The Sinaloa Cartel, a Mexican criminal organization that engages in narcotrafficking, is strengthening its power and base in Venezuela to smuggle drugs, with the support of the Nicolás Maduro regime. In its report Mexican Cartels – Venezuela’s Uninvited Guests Here to Stay, InSight Crime, a non-profit journalism and investigative organization [ … ]
Venezuelan Regime Uses Pandemic for Political Ends
The massive business shutdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic has caused millions of jobs to be lost. In the case of Venezuelan migrants, faced with a lack of resources to survive far from home, some have decided to return to their country of origin. Upon arrival, however, they are mistreated, [ … ]
Colombia and Panama Strengthen Borders Against Drugs
The security forces of Colombia and Panama have increased surveillance operations along their borders in an effort to disrupt illicit drug trafficking. On April 22, in two multinational operations conducted in Panama with the United States and Colombia, authorities seized 2,193 kilograms of cocaine hydrochloride, worth $73 million. The Panamanian [ … ]
Panama Increases Drug Seizures, Despite COVID-19
Although a great part of the National Aeronaval Service (SENAN, in Spanish) and the National Border Service’s (SENAFRONT, in Spanish) personnel is committed to the COVID-19 Health Joint Task Force, which the Panamanian government created to respond to the coronavirus crisis, operations against transnational criminal organizations have not let up. During [ … ]
Vladimir Padrino: Power in the Shadows in Venezuela
Venezuelan Army General Vladimir Padrino, minister of Defense for the Nicolás Maduro regime, was among the U.S. Department of Justice’s March list of wanted individuals, accused of being part of the Cartel of the Suns’ narcotrafficking and terrorism network. Padrino controls food distribution and leads 11 of Venezuela’s 32 ministries. [ … ]
Colombian Counternarcotic Mission Deals Heavy Blow in the Cauca Region
Colombian authorities announced that eight dissidents from the former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) were neutralized during a joint military counternarcotics operation. In a statement released to the press, military officials said on April 14 that a specialized unit from the Colombian Army’s Third Division infiltrated the municipality of [ … ]
Confusion and Imprisonment in Venezuela Due to Pandemic
Uncertainty prevails in Venezuela as COVID-19 spreads, not only due to the health system’s inability to face the pandemic, but also because official data are not trustworthy, and those who question them risk being detained. “You cannot trust the figures that the Nicolás Maduro regime provides. His administration has a [ … ]
Paraguay Increases the Fight Against Narcotrafficking
On April 10, Paraguayan authorities seized a light aircraft with a Bolivian registration transporting more than 385 kilograms of cocaine on board. The Paraguayan Navy, Air Force, the Office of the Attorney General, and the National Police made the discovery in a rural establishment in the municipality of Bahía Negra, [ … ]
Partner Nations Step Up Drug Seizures
Colombian, Costa Rican, and Panamanian authorities, with intelligence support from the U.S. military, fight against narcotrafficking in combined operations. Costa Rica on alert According to Michael Soto, Costa Rican minister of Public Security, on April 15, the Costa Rican Air Vigilance Service and the U.S. Coast Guard Helicopter Interdiction Tactical [ … ]