Shocking moment Colombian military intercepts cocaine-laden speedboat off El Salvador in seizure operation that yields $166m worth of drugs
- An operation between Colombian and American security forces resulted in the seizure of 4,156 kilos of cocaine off the coast of El Salvador last week
- The massive cargo was worth around $166 million and was removed from two speedboats that were intercepted off Punta Remedios, El Salvador.
- The National Police of Colombia reported that the drugs were shipped by a splinter group from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia
This is the shocking moment authorities in Colombia and the United States intercepted a speedboat in a raid that carried $166 million worth of cocaine.
Surveillance video shows the narco boat idling in Pacific Ocean waters off Punta Remedios, El Salvador, as authorities focus on the boat.
Footage shows three of the seven suspected drug traffickers who were arrested voluntarily raising their hands as authorities pulled up to their speedboat.
At least two of the suspects have been identified as Ecuadorian nationals while the other five were all from Colombia.
Colombia’s National Police said the boat and another similar vessel were wrecked 406 and 430 miles, respectively, off Punta Remedios, the two carrying a combined $166 million worth of illegal drugs.
One of two speedboats that were intercepted by the Colombian and American military about 400 nautical miles off the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Punta Remedios, El Salvador last week. The shipment, totaling 4,156 kilos, was worth $166 million
Some of the packages that made up the 4,156 kilos of cocaine seized by the Colombian and American military on two drug trafficking vessels near the coast of El Salvador
Colombian National Police General Jorge Vargas said the two vessels left a port in Tumaco, a town in the northwestern department of Nariño, last week and were carrying a total of 4,156 kilos of cocaine.
Allende Perilla Sandoval, a senior member of a splinter group from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, is believed to oversee a drug trafficking ring that shipped 4,156 kilos of cocaine on two ships that were intercepted last week near the Pacific ocean coast in El Salvador.
He did not indicate the final destination of the delivery.
According to Vargas, the cargo belonged to a splinter group from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia led by Iván Márquez, a guerrilla leader who was part of the 2016 peace deal with the government before abandoning the truce process in 2019 .
Vargas added that the cocaine shipment was overseen by Allende Perilla Sandoval and was sent by two guerrilla members known as Cagua and Malón.
The traffickers separated the cocaine packets by placing labels bearing the Fendi and Polo Ralph Lauren logos. Another label had three 7s.
The Colombian National Police said the seizure of 4,156 kilos of cocaine was the largest in recent months
Four of seven suspected drug traffickers who were arrested by Colombian and US military agents last week near El Salvador
The speedboat had its engine shut down when US and Colombian military agents intercepted it about 400 nautical miles off the coast of El Salvador.
Perilla Sandoval is said to be in charge of administering the splinter group’s drug trafficking operations.
“(He) is one of the main drug traffickers in Tumaco (Nariño),” Vargas was quoted by Colombian media outlet Semana as saying. “This is one of the biggest operations of recent months.”
A year-end narcotics report released by Defense Minister Diego Molano showed Colombian authorities confiscated more than 659 tons of cocaine and more than 5,414 clandestine drug labs were destroyed in 2021.
In addition, at least 100,000 hectares where coca leaves were planted were wiped out, including 148,000 in the departments.
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