Colombian Navy Seizes 200 Kilos of Cocaine From a Ship's Sea Chest

 

Colombian Navy forces have seized more than 200 kilos of cocaine in a dive inspection of a merchant ship at the port of Buenaventura, the largest port complex on the nation's Pacific coast. 

An underwater inspection by divers from the Buenaventura Coast Guard Station revealed seven large black bags in the ship's sea chest. They were pulled up to the surface, and sealed bricks were found inside. A rapid test revealed that the bricks were cocaine. 

"With this seizure, the [navy] prevented the commercialization of more than 521,000 doses of narcotics . . . [and] affected the entry of more than $10 million into the criminal finances of drug trafficking organizations," the service said in a statement. 

Courtesy Armada de Colombia

Colombia is the world's leading producer of cocaine, and a long series of political developments have contributed to soaring drug production and falling prices. The drug is exported in ever-increasing volumes to consumers in Europe, North America and Australia, the highest-earning destination markets. Europe may become an increasingly desirable export market because of the U.S. airstrike campaign against northbound drug boats in the Pacific and the Caribbean. 

The Colombian Navy is the closest maritime force to the source of the drug flow, and plays a leading role in interdiction, often with outsize, multi-tonne busts. In the latest example, on November 13, the service announced the seizure of 7,000 kilos aboard two go-fast boats and a semisubmersible. The service also participates in operations to target the upstream and midstream cocaine supply chain, taking down coca production labs on land in cooperation with Colombia's army and police forces. In September and October alone, it joined raids on 34 illegal labs.